Marvelous Web-head
by Mastah Jasonic
Summary: My own personal take on the Spider-Man mythos, this story sees Peter Parker starting out a few months after transforming into Spider-Man as he struggles to balance his superhero and civilian life while dealing with the constant threat of supervillains, the pressure of his relationships, and the weight of his choices. Rated T for language, drug use, and certain themes.
1. Where There's a Hangup

**Author's Note: **_Hello, fellow readers and Fanfiction members! After a while of thinking over my previous version of this story, I decided to redo it under a different title. For those who don't know, this story was previously titled _The Sensational Spider-Man _and was to involve a series of events centered around Peter Parker discovering the mysteries of his parents while balancing his civilian life with fighting villains related to those past events. While it sounded cool at first, I realized it would have bogged the series from all the normal high school student and Spider-Man stuff that could have made it fun. And thus, the story is now titled _Marvelous Web-head _and will center around the first of many years where Peter adjusts to his hero life while trying to balance it with his civilian life and the two cross paths in ways unlike any other. So, without further adieu, enjoy it, readers!_

* * *

**Marvelous Web-head #1: Homecoming Affairs**

The busy streets of Manhattan were quite busy now that night had passed over the land. Down below the cars streaked the night with their bright lights and filled the noisy air with their blaring horns as constant traffic turned what was thought to be a peaceful, dull evening into a hectic mess of people driving/riding home from work for the evening. While the streets proved to be the ultimate source of daily drama for the residents of Manhattan, up above, a different story was about to be told.

A lone black widow spider crawled across its specially made web it had created between the side and gutters of a somewhat tall building. Then, like a streak of light, a much larger, more agile figure whooshed by, causing the spider to fly off its web, shooting a web from its rear-end to catch itself on its web. The figure tumbled, hopped, and flipped across the buildings in an acrobatic fashion, its brightly colored red and blue spider-themed suit remaining surprisingly ambiguous in the low light high above the city. As the figure ran across a building, past a series of mounted gargoyles lining it, he proceeded to leap high above the streets, shooting out a silky, spider web-like strand of chord from a silver gadget lining his wrist. With a loud cowboy interjection, the figure swung around a building nearby and landed on his feet, sticking to and and running across the wall with ease. Not caring about who would see him like this, the primary colored being leapt far across toward another building, thinking silently to himself about all the freedom he had in the world.

_Admit it, Pete, things don't get much better than this,_ the figure thought silently as he spun another web. _When you spend your summer vacation experiencing the thrills of what it's like to be a hero, nothing can top the feeling of freedom! The wind blowing across your body, the numerous webs you spin that dry out later, and the power to fight crime, nothing could be better!_

"I am THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN!" the figure named Spider-Man called out into the night as he swung across several buildings and perched on top a falcon statue jutting out from the Chrysler Building.

_Just one thing's missing, though, it's my last night of freedom before my last first day of school starts and I'm really craving some action,_ Spider-Man thought longingly.

Just then, his sixth sense known as "Spider Sense" kicked into gear, alerting him to danger nearby. Peering through his sunglasses that made up his eye lenses, he scanned the horizon, his infrared-like vision confirming the imminent danger of several gunmen holding people in a nearby parking lot.

_So some average lowlifes decided to kidnap civilians this late into the evening… Not on my watch!_

Unwilling to let anything bad happen, Spider-Man leapt far from his perch, letting gravity take him to the streets until he spun a web that saved his life at the last second. Without taking his sweet time, Spidey made his way to the parking lot, kicking his legs into the nearest goon that fell with his force, causing a scene that alerted the goons with guns as well as their hostages. As he webbed the criminal down, reactions varied.

"Spider-Man!" cried out a woman hostage looking up.

"Keep your mouth shut, or he gets it!" one of the many criminals in cowboy hats ordered, nudging his gun toward her head.

"Thought you could sneak up and surprise us, huh, Web-head? Well, not today!" another criminal taunted the Web-head.

"You know, if you didn't call out my presence so much, the element of surprise might still remain intact," Spidey quipped. "Ah, who am I kidding? I'm the one making a hell of an entrance here!"

"Enough talk! Sick 'em, boys!" called out yet another criminal - three of now seven - who bore a Southern accent. Raising their rifles pointed away from the hostages, the Western-themed criminals fired barrages of bullets at Spider-Man, the Web-head himself determined to dodge everything with Spider Sense guiding him. By launching a web out backward, Spider-Man retreated to the corner of the parking lot between the connected buildings, the criminals failing to hit him as a moving target.

"Whoa, hold on! Isn't there a way to resolve this without violence?" Spidey pleaded, feigning meekness.

"Boy, where we come from, we let our guns do the talkin'! Ain't nobody got time for damn petty debates!" spouted a gunman. The rest of them continued to shoot their weapons at the Web-slinger, their bullets whizzing by him in what felt like slow motion as he flipped off the wall and spurted out webs to avoid getting shot. Reeling in from a flip, he spun out two weblines, each latching onto two different gunman's firearms, and pulling them to yank them out of their hands. He webbed them to the floor as the now gunless criminals charged at him, fists ready, and started flailing on him, the Web-head dodging each punch with super precision skills.

"Lucky for you, I pull my punches!" Spidey told them as he pulled two punches on one of them, finishing him with a kick that threw him from the floor and webbing him down. Turning to the other guy within reach, he grabbed him by the arm and flipped him over, webbing him also to the asphalt. He couldn't have been prouder of his spider powers.

But there still remained the hostages. He needed to get them to aim their guns away from them or there'd be people to mop the floor with.

Making use of his acrobatics and his web shooters, he zipped toward the nearest building along a web line effectively directing the gunfire away from the hostages. With precision, he turned and shot out two web nets that fell raining down on two more crooks backing away in an effort to escape. Soon as their guns fell with a clank to the ground, Spidey turned his attention toward the nearest criminal reloading his weapon, dropping to the ground and smacking it right out of his hand like a fly swatter to a fly. Spidey then proceeded to kick the guy under his feet, sending him falling to the ground in a manner that rendered him unable to get back up. Seeing this, the remaining two crooks attempted to run away from the parking lot, but Spider Sense wouldn't allow Spidey to let them escape. He instinctively shot out a web line that instantly tripped up the escaping convict Spidey propelling himself toward the guy to kick him out cold. With some hesitation, the one criminal that remained turned back to watch his friend get pummeled knowing that Spider-Man was about to come after him.

"Oh no, you don't!" Spidey called out, pouncing on the criminal before he could reach the street. "Fleeing the scene is my shtick! You start spinning a web and I'll sue!"

"Can't sue me, Web-head!" the criminal underneath him taunted. "Where we come from, murder takes place day and night so often it don't matter who gets what just so long as we get equal share!"

"Equal share?" Spidey questioned. "You're the one making a run for it. Without you, these guys would have a more equal share than if I hadn't caught you just now!"

"Feeling merciful are you, Web-head?"

"For your information, where I come from, we serve justice to lowlifes like you! And for that matter, it's best the cops get a proper head count for when they come and take you away!" Spidey explained, webbing up the criminal upside down in a web cocoon to hang from a light post nearby. Hopefully, the blood wouldn't rush to his head before they arrived.

Behind Spider-Man, the four different hostages stood up to approach their savior whom they undoubtedly were most glad for.

"Spider-Man, you saved us!" a grateful woman noted.

"If it weren't for you, we'd be dead!" a businessman complimented.

Turning to face them, Spidey spun a web that would ultimately shoot him over the nearest building. "Don't mention it!" he said. "And do tell the cops this was all courtesy of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man! The Press already gives me a bad enough rep as is!"

"Will do, Spider-Man!" another woman ascertained.

And just like that, Spidey swung over of the building, the red and blue lights of the cop cars below blending with his red and blue figure as he made his way out into the night. As the cop cars pulled up to the scene, the entire unit busted out of their cars and scanned the perimeter, their handguns pointed down the lit night street. After one of them shouted "Clear!", a single graying haired man with a rough build in his early fifties donning a commissioner uniform carrying a pistol made his entrance by stepping out of the car.

"Perimeter's clear, move up!" the man called out to his unit as they poured their way onto the parking lot. Sidearms out, they scanned the area searching for any signs of criminal activity only to find all eight of them were either out cold, webbed up on the ground, or hanging from the light post. Seeing this, the commissioner was rather unimpressed, suspicious, at best, of what all had occurred prior to his arrival.

"Is anyone here hurt?" asked a cop.

They all muttered their gratitude towards the fact that they were saved by Spider-Man much to the captain's dismay.

"Enough!" the captain called out, his gruff voice silencing everyone in the vicinity. "This does nothing, but confirm one thing: the Spider-Man is still at large."

"Permission to speak, Captain Stacy!" announced one of the lower ranking cops raising his hand.

"Be my guest," provoked Captain Stacy.

"The Spider-Man here is doing our job, and rather well I might add. Shouldn't we consider him an ally of sorts?"

Unfortunate for him, the captain had already made up his mind. "A vigilante's a vigilante, officer. The work they do takes the law out of our hands. If they're constantly beating us to the scene, we may yet have nothing left to do. As long as this one's still out there, he is outside the law."

The remaining cops nodded in unison at the captain's speech. He did have a point, even if some of them were reluctant to admit it out loud. Plus, he was the NYPD commissioner, John Stacy. What he said was final in the eyes of the law no matter if anyone else believed he was wrong.

* * *

As Spider-Man swung his way through the concrete canyons of New York, the constant blaring of car horns and police sirens distant noise to him through the updrafts, he checked his phone, making sure he didn't get too many Instagram or Facebook notifications during his crime stopping show. Just for fun, he decided to take a selfie in midair, the flash on his phone illuminating his brightly colored suit in the night light. Nothing could have been better for his own self-serving ego.

"And that concludes our broadcast day!" he shouted mimicking the nature of a classic TV broadcaster. "What time is it anyway?"

Flipping through the screens on his phone while swinging, his stomach sank the moment he read on his home screen that it was 11:37 at night.

"Almost midnight?!" he exclaimed. "Oh no, Aunt May's gonna fry my ass if I'm not home before then! Gotta make it back to Queens and fast!"

Without any hesitation, Spidey swooped away, shooting himself over and around buildings as he made his way en route to the bridge that connected Manhattan to Queens. While the Web-head was clearly the talk of the town, little did everyone know the facade he wore on a daily basis was nothing, but the secret life of a resident who grew up in Queens, New York his entire life: Peter Benjamin Parker. From an early age, Peter was left in the care of his Aunt May and Uncle Ben after his parents mysteriously left him at their household around the age of six. As such, Peter always led such a sheltered life, which led to him possessing an intellect similar to Albert Einstein's. As a student, he had a history of receiving many honors for being the smartest thinker in Midtown Manhattan High School located in the heart of Manhattan. If anyone at his school or beyond Manhattan knew of his secret identity, it would have spelled a world of doom for him given the kind of world he lived in; this was a world where various superheroes - namely the Avengers or Fantastic Four - defended Earth from planet-ending disasters and villains trying to cause them. Thankfully, Peter and his work as Spider-Man only kept confined to the bounds of New York as he mainly took pleasure in stopping small petty crime around the place on a regular basis. If anything happened around there, he'd be first to know.

Having traversed the seemingly endless cityscape and made his way into the suburbs of Queens, Spider-Man perched upon his house roof, trying not to cause too much racket as to wake his Aunt May should she be asleep. He crawled like a spider along the roof, the hairs penetrating his thin costume fabric and allowing him to stick to the tiles without falling, and peaked into the upstairs bedroom window. To his surprise and relief, he found his Aunt May kneeling at edge of her bed, her gray-haired appearance facing away from her as she prayed to the Lord Almighty above presumably for Peter to return home.

_Don't worry, Aunt May. God wasn't the only thing that brought me home safe,_ Peter thought to himself.

He then proceeded to leap down from the window, his folded clothes awaiting him sitting on the porch, which he kept hidden thankfully. Throwing on his long sleeve shirt and jeans over his spider-themed costume, he put on his shoes and attempted to act casual. He stomped a few steps on the porch to make it sound like he was walking up, turned the door knob, and poked his head into the darkened foyer to see that the coast was clear. Stepping into the home, he turned around and shut the door only to be met with footsteps approaching him from the staircase behind him.

"Peter, dear! You're alright!" called out the aging Aunt May in her fifties as she made her way down the staircase dressed in her brightly colored nightie.

Attempting to look surprised, Peter turned around, eyes widened as Aunt May approached him. "Aunt May… you're awake," he said, faking hesitancy rather convincingly. "I'm so sorry I'm home late, I-"

"Not now, Peter. We need to talk," Aunt May said, walking right up to Peter, her height not even reaching his the moment she laid a hand on his shoulder. Without hesitancy, Peter followed her into the dining room, his heart rate quickening as she led him there. What would she say to scold him for being out so late - and on the last night before school starts no less? He turned to her attention. "Listen, Peter, you're becoming a strong young man, the man of the house now, in fact. But I can't have you staying out close to midnight, especially on a school night. I prayed day and night for you to return home safely, and thank heavens you're okay! But you must remember what happened to our beloved Ben last time he stayed out this late. I simply cannot allow that to happen to you too."

Peter slumped at the memory of what she was talking about. That fateful night a few months ago in March when he decided to use his newfound powers for selfish gain. After an intense argument between him and Uncle Ben transpired in front of Aunt May, Peter used his powers to run away and enter a wrestling match, which he won before the place got robbed by some random crook. He selfishly let the guy escape the place only to find out later that someone, who turned out to be the same thief, shot down Uncle Ben on his walk home. It was the reason Peter decided to use his powers for good and stop crime on a dime. According to Aunt May, however, the fact that he secretly decided to keep it going so late was definitely starting to worry her, especially after what happened that night.

"Aunt May, I'm sorry, I just-I know you miss him. I do too. I'm just not sure how to cope without him around," Peter admitted, trying to relate to her previous statement.

"There are plenty of ways you can do that without staying out late worrying me. Which is why I'm establishing a new rule: starting this school year, you are to be home by no later than ten o'clock. If, however, you find yourself running late, feel free to call to let me know you're on your way home," Aunt May professed sternly. "Do we have an agreement?"

Peter didn't have to think too hard about what to answer. He might have been a big shot hero trying to save the day on a regular basis, but, apart from that, he was still just a scrawny seventeen-year-old needing to live under his aunt's roof. He might as well abide by her rules no matter what. "Sure thing, Aunt May. I admit, I still need your caretaking skills and, if I'm to take care of myself someday soon, I may as well take care of you too!"

"Good news: you've passed the first test of earning my trust! Keep it up, and you'll be rewarded!" Aunt May said, patting her nephew on the shoulder.

To this, Peter smiled. He may not have been an expert on being a person, but, if there was one person he could count on to get closer to achieving that, it would be his Aunt May. For all he knew, he may never reach perfection, but nobody came closer to achieving that quite like her. As the man of the house, he knew he would accept his responsibility, vowing never to disappoint her.

* * *

The red and white sign lit brightly the words "Big Sky Billiards" in a clarion call that attracted patrons to the underground billiard room hiding underneath. Little did the regular patrons know that at night most of the attendees were of the criminal variety. Thankfully, no one had to be there during the hours of the night besides those belonging to said variety.

A lone man in a large white cowboy hat and Southern-themed attire strode down the staircase leading directly to the billiard room and bar, carrying equipment he had been utilizing to spy on a recent subject. Gathering his binoculars and recording device, he approached the sublevel door, peering over his shoulder and scowling darkly under his hat to ensure he hadn't been followed. The way he did business was not to be compromised.

He pushed the door open to the full view of the billiard room, his presence garnering the attention of a few select patrons in the midst of a card game.

"Look here, boys, Montana's back!" one of them with a heavy New York accent announced under the bar noise.

Montana strode through the crowd en route to the bar stools, passing all the men of different criminal divisions drinking, playing card games, taking shots on the pool tables, and arm wrestling one another to prove who was the strongest. Having been late to his own meeting, he wasted no time moseying up toward the bar counter, taking his seat at the central bar stool, and throwing his equipment aside, his presence alone bringing the bartender to attention. The others sitting around him stared him down eagerly as if awaiting special news to be delivered.

"My favorite lager, on the fly!" Montana demanded speaking in his Southern accent. He threw his cash down on the counter aggressively.

"Will do, sir!" the bartender saluted, his Australian accent striking hard with the patrons sitting around him. With that, he hurried to pull out Montana's drink: an American lager he so passionately favored. The bartender slid it over to him, Montana catching it firmly and popping the cap clean off. With a big sip, he slammed the drink down hard onto the counter, the jolting pound causing a surge throughout the immediate area.

"Thank ya very much!" Montana respected the bartender despite what little respect he carried for other people. He turned to face everyone else, gathering their attention without much difficulty. "Now, I bet y'all are wondering why I invited y'all here in the first place."

They all shrugged in different ways, confused as to why this would be such an impromptu meeting.

"Dunno."

"Beats me!"

"I'm completely outta the loop on this one."

Hearing these reactions, Montana stood up and leaned against the bar with a cool demeanor. "Okay then, here's the spill: did some reconnaissance at a parking lot to make sure our fellow Criminal Deputies and our leader were safe in executing the business people that tried to expose us. They broke into their apartment, took 'em out to the parking, and, low and behold, a figure donning red and blue leaped in and saved the day! Any idea what that means?"

"That you're crazy and need your head checked?" one of his fellow men joked.

"Not at all, son. This means our suspicions are confirmed: the Spider-Man is real," Montana confirmed.

"No way!"

"This is insane!"

"And I thought one masked vigilante picking us off was enough."

"So did I, but then the big man I work for showed me security footage of this bug taking down my men once before tonight and decided to make it a priority to have him eliminated. Claims it'll spread his influence beyond the usual business of taking out hitman after hitman, hoping to take control of our fair city here," Montana explained.

"Sir…" said one of his men toward which Montana scowled at because he titled him incorrectly. "Sorry, Montana, if I may ask what's the name of this 'big man' you keep mentioning? He sounds pretty important if you ask me."

"Careful what you say around here, son," Montana affirmed. "The big man had me swear not to mention his name. If I did, there'd be civil unrest in the criminal underworld. Rebellion even. Anyhow, the most important thing we focus on is how to eliminate this bug whom they call 'Spider-Man' before he picks us all off completely. Before I continue, does anyone have any ideas?"

The few of them paused for a moment, trying to conjure up any genius ideas that could potentially catch someone as agile as the rumors regarding Spider-Man claimed to be. However, almost none of them could reach any conclusions.

"I'm kind of dimwitted right now."

"Not sure."

"This old mook's running outta good ideas."

"Very well, if no one else is willing to step up and give their take on it, allow me to give mine: how's about we act like Robin Hood and take from the rich to give to us poor fellows?" Montana asked firmly.

"What do you mean?" asked the meekest one in the bunch.

"Here's the deal: a few former colleagues of mine work for this high end science company looking to push the boundaries of technology, medicine, and any sort of human enhancement you could think of. Their name: Oscorp. They all put together loads of high tech weapon contributions for our American military and beyond. If we take what they plan on selling to their associates, we could take out the bug with ease. Not only that, but I've been looking to steal a device meant to compliment this snazzy new outfit I've been dreaming up. If we can steal all that under the radar, the Web-head won't stand a chance," Montana finished. There was an air of certainty as the criminal lowlifes exchanged each other looks of excitement, proud of Montana for his foolproof plan.

"Wow, that's so genius, why didn't I think of that?" the bigger guy said proudly.

"If that's what you think we should do, you should be our new leader!" another man suggested.

"Lucky for you boys, I just happened to be entrusted to take over should our leader get arrested. Since he did and what not, I reckon it's about time for Montana Herman Schultz to make his mark on his fellow Criminal Deputies," Montana affirmed, lowering his cowboy hat to shade his shady appearance further in the low bar light. If there was anything the previous leader could count on it was that Montana had a plan to make their gang even bigger than ever with the idea to enact a series of heists on Oscorp. Should they come to fruition, the Criminal Deputies would become the heroes of their own story, trumping even the most noble heroes of New York City.

* * *

**Thank you all for reading this revamped chapter if you came back to read it! Stay tuned as I figure out more of what to do with this story next however long it takes!**


	2. The Last First Day

**Author's Note: **_Hello, story followers and readers at Fanfiction! For those of you wondering, I recently rewrote and re-titled this story as _Marvelous Web-head - _previously called _The Sensational Spider-Man - _so if you haven't read the new first chapter I did, I'd suggest going to read that before diving into this chapter. Most of this chapter is the same as the previous first chapter I did, but with a few word tweaks and new scenes to fit the new story I have in mind. And for those of you who were looking forward to the previous story I had going, fear not! For I have made this story ten times better! So, without further adieu, I am hopeful you all continue to read and enjoy the story retelling the life of Peter Parker and his adventures as Spider-Man!_

* * *

The next morning in Queens, the sun rose and showed through the blinds of every residence lining the neighborhood. Some were already awake while others slept in and dreamed, letting warm and fuzzy thoughts fill their heads. In the residence of the Parker's, however, things were different; books were spread out along Peter's bed of which he kept open all night using them as pillows. For Peter, this was standard sleeping territory on an average night before the first day of school.

Soon as the sunlight hit his eyes and his alarm clock went off on his bedside table, Peter snorted awake having realized he had been drooling into his newly bought copy of _Seabiscuit_ much to his dismay. Taking into account his own strength, Peter slammed his fist down onto his alarm clock to shut it off, sat up, and yawned, fully aware of what day it was today. _Today's the final first day of my public school life and I couldn't be more excited! _Peter thought to himself. _Things'll be vastly different. The friends I've come to know and love will be my backup dealing with bullies and we'll show them who's boss! _Despite any happenings from the previous year, Peter remained optimistic about life and was open to infinite possibilities of what lay ahead. He couldn't wait to get his future started.

Jumping out of bed, he made his way over to his closet and opened it to find his red and blue spider-themed spandex suit he made himself. Ever so eagerly, he threw it on to leave under his unusual choice of long-sleeved clothing that was enough to make even Aunt May question why he dressed like that all the time even in summer - his only excuse right now in September was that temperatures were cooling. Grabbing his school stuff, books and all, he unlocked his self-made state of the art electronic lock on his door and made his way out of his room towards the bathroom where he took a good look at his own Caucasian appearance in the mirror. He smoothed his slicked up brown hair and looked himself clear into his own brown eyes knowing his looks were good even without his glasses. And so, he took off downstairs in anticipation to greet his aunt like the sweetheart she was.

"'Morning, Aunt May! How's the nicest girl in Queens doing this fine morning?" Peter made his presence known optimistically to Aunt May standing at the kitchen counter.

"Oh, I certainly slept well after you came home," Aunt May stated neutrally. "And how's my dear nephew doing?"

"Never better!" he said kissing her on her wrinkled cheek to which she giggled.

"I suppose you'd better hurry to the bus stop. Wouldn't want to be late on your last first day back now would you?"

"No ma'am. I mean it's only my senior year - which I might add is bound to be the best year ever!"

"You're certainly growing up. Seems like just yesterday you were off to your first day of first grade carrying your backpack and lunch to the bus stop."

"Those were the days," Peter looked off reminiscing. "Speaking of, do you mind if I pack my lunch for a change this year?"

"Oh, I almost forgot! I decided to follow tradition and pack your lunch ahead of schedule," Aunt May stated as she strode off into the kitchen to retrieve the item in question.

"Aw, Aunt May!" Peter exclaimed annoyed. "I'm seventeen not seven. I can handle a few responsibilities."

By the time he finished his sentence, Aunt May had already gone and grabbed the sack lunch she had made well before Peter got up, delightfully handing it to Peter with pride. "Oh, Peter. Just know that no matter what they say, you'll always be my little nephew," she said looking up at him with a hand on his shoulder. "Now hurry along, don't let me keep you!"

"Will do, Aunt May!" he responded grabbing his sack lunch. "Have a good rest of your day and I'll see you later!"

Heading for the door, Peter strode outside, holding his aunt in high regard for the way she treated him in spite of him causing her to worry the previous night. After all, his secret life had been gifted to him just a few months ago, and despite the downer circumstances it brought to him, it was the only way for him to now bypass the difficulties of riding/driving through the city by himself. At this point in his life, he was glad to have been bitten by a genetically modified spider that gave him powers that allowed him to become the very thing the city needed most. And so, after making sure no one was in sight, he hid well in some nearby bushes to navigate his backpack for his red mask with white and black eye lenses and some red and blue gloves equipped with his web shooters. Applying both pieces to his appearance, he proceeded to remove his clothes and put them in his backpack, uncovering his spandex suit and emerging from the bushes once more as the Amazing Spider-Man.

"One thing's for sure, despite what Aunt May thinks, I won't be taking the bus anymore. Nobody got time for that crap. Not while Spider-Man's still around at least," Peter proclaimed to himself under his mask. He then turned to fire his web shooters toward the nearest building, zipping along the web's trajectory toward the roof of the nearest residential building and running across it to the end. In a series of action moves, flips, and web zips he made his way beyond the Queens suburb and into the more commercial-oriented district where a train was stationed for eventual departure.

"Guess I'll just hang out here until the train moves along," Spider-Man thought out loud to himself as he proceeded to pull out his phone to check the time. "And what do ya know? For once it looks like I'll actually be getting to school at a decent time. Midtown Manhattan High, here I come!"

With a sudden nudge, the train began to roll out from its current position much to Spidey's surprise. As if it weren't already convenient enough for him to have a train to latch onto, the train's departure was the next best thing for him getting to school at a decent time. This seemed to be his only option as there was the bridge to swing across, which usually resulted in slower movement than the speed the elevated subway carried him. And so, without much to worry about he took a seat and chilled atop the moving train car, casually scrolling through his phone for any sign of a social media post from his high school clique. Surely enough, he found on Facebook yet another post of an overlook shot of the city from his best friend, Harry Osborn, stating "It's the last night before my senior year so I thought I'd take one last shot of the city during my time of freedom. #lastnight #saveme". Seeing this, Peter chuckled. He almost wished he could experience Harry's view from Oscorp Tower on a regular basis, but, then again, he already got enough of a thrill jumping from buildings all the time.

Before he knew it, the train had taken Peter to the other side of the bridge where his stop was located and so he packed his phone and took off. From there, he proceeded to swing off into Manhattan, calling out to the New York traffic below as he made his daily appearance to the amazement of pedestrians and kids looking out their car windows. With little time to focus on his surroundings, the Web-head mentally set a course for Midtown Manhattan High, soaring over buildings through use of his weblines and acrobatics. Web swinging his way to school on the first day couldn't have been more thrilling. But could he reach the building in time for the bell to ring? He wondered.

He shot himself over one last building and in plain view was the grounds of the aptly named Midtown Manhattan High in the heart of Midtown. From the many kids getting off the school bus to those convening in the cafeteria courtyard, the school looked busier than ever. As much as he was now tired of going there for now the fourth year in a row, Peter could hardly wait to get in on the action.

Setting down in an alleyway behind a nearby dumpster, Peter threw his street clothes on over his suit and made his way across the street and onto the school grounds where the entrance door was in sight. Just when Peter thought he was in the clear, his backpack strap was caught by a manly hand as thick as his "spider abs". With a jolt, Peter looked up to find the tan, slicked up blonde head of Fred "Flash" Thompson looking down upon him with a sly grin on his face.

"Well, if it isn't Puny Ass Parker back to claim his throne as 'top geek' at this school," the bully, Flash, taunted. "What's the matter? Are you nothing without your backpack?"

With a single tug, Flash pulled off Peter's book bag and claimed it for himself. Peter reached for it before Flash pulled it away, holding it high above his head for no good reason at all.

"If it isn't 'Flash' Thompson thinking he's all that just by keeping his backpack away from me," Peter retorted. "Seriously, I thought we called it even after I outsmarted you in a fight last year."

That was a day Flash hadn't forgotten about hardly at all. It was the day that Peter tested his new powers out on the bully and found out he now had the capability to put him in the nurse office with a black eye and bloody nose. "Oh, I'm sorry. I seem to recall you wanting to 'get even' that day. Now it's my turn!" he proclaimed before turning to his "jock mates" in matching orange and black Midtown jackets standing all around him. "Hey, guys! Let's line up in formation to play monkey in the middle!"

Without consideration for Peter's well-being or the fact that he was about to be late to class, Flash tossed Peter's book bag to the jock all the way across the circle. Peter followed his bag, but was unable to reach it before it got tossed to the next one in sight. Frustrating as this was, Peter wished he could utilize his enhanced speed to catch up.

Fortunately for Peter, another like minded soul happened to be walking nearby and strolled in on the commotion.

"Flash!" the voice of the blonde-haired, fair faced girl calling herself Gwendolyn Stacy - Gwen for short - called out. "What did we say about kicking Peter's ass on our final first day?"

"B-but, Gwen, that was summer school! This year things are different!" Flash replied. "And if you don't step out of the way, your stuff's next!"

"Please, Flash! If you could pass the ball under pressure, would we have lost to Staten Island Tech last year?" she stated sarcastically. "For all we know, you're too chicken to come grab my bag and start throwing it around yourself."

The surrounding jocks gave mixed reactions of "oohs" and laughed at the burn she just delivered inciting Flash to surrender to her womanly dominance. Right then and there, Flash handed the bag to his stocky black friend, Rand Robertson, who approached Gwen and Peter with the latter's book bag in hand.

"Dude, you want some aloe vera for that burn?" Rand asked in his signature chill voice before handing Peter back his back, which he had caught in the previous scuffle. "Here you go, Einstein. It's all you."

"T-thanks, Rand," said Peter. "I appreciate you being the most helpful of this group."

"Don't mention it. Just following family rule here," Rand stated, referring to his father who worked for a big name newspaper tabloid printing company in Manhattan.

"Good to know," Gwen said to him prior to the first bell ringing overhead, alerting them to class starting in five minutes. "That's the first bell. Better buck up if you wanna get to class on time, sweaty athlete!"

Her last statement was directed at Flash who slumped in shame over the smart girl's ability to outsmart him not only in intelligence, but in wits as well. She was often there to save Peter's hide in the midst of a bully scuffle ever since they formed a clique their first year of high school together. This often lead to Flash's attempts to bully Peter resulting in fruitless comebacks that left him ashamed of trying to bully a "nerdette" such as Gwen whilst she stood next to Peter. Because of this recent attempt, Flash was left to kick his backpack lying next to him in frustration while Peter and Gwen took off into the school, giggling under their breaths at the way Flash essentially humiliated himself. What a way for him to start off his first day at the head of the class.

Soon as they checked to see that the jocks took off in a different direction, Peter and Gwen turned to face each other. "Thanks for saving me back there, Gwen. I really owe you one."

"You owe nothing, Peter. I'm just doing my job as 'smartest in our class' like I always do," she boasted.

"Hey, now, who said you were the smartest?" Peter asked in a playful tone.

"I'm pretty sure you did all those times I helped you with chemistry homework last year." She was right. Peter might have been the next Albert Einstein in terms of intellect and capacity to ace science on a regular basis, but, without Gwen, his abilities and confidence were hardly that refined.

"Well, but… Okay, you're right, I did. But anyways, I'm, like, really, really impressed by your ability to turn the tides against Flash like that. I mean, seriously, how do you do that?"

"When your dad's a certain police captain who asserts himself to the criminals of New York, you learn a few things that other folk don't learn around here."

"Well, it's a good thing John knows what he's doing training you up the way he does!" Peter complimented.

"You know me too well," Gwen finished as they proceeded to walk into their shared first period physics classroom where students were already communing and talking amongst each other. Among them sat the brown curly haired Harry Osborn, Peter's best friend since seventh grade, and the red headed Mary Jane Watson, Peter's next door neighbor and childhood friend from whom he often accepted the nickname "Tiger". The two were muttering under their breath to discuss schedules with each other when Harry turned his thin face toward Peter and Gwen taking their seats at the counter next to him and Mary Jane.

"Hey there, Pete! How'd the final summer of your undergraduate life treat you?" Harry asked gesturing to his best friend.

"Oh, hey, Harry. Pretty boring summer I'll say," Peter said to mask the fact that he was now that Spider-Man guy swinging around everywhere.

"That's too bad. My dad was stuck in boardrooms all summer, which left me stuck in crappy bore_dom _all by myself. I can't believe all this time we could've been bored together, but then again, what gives? This year's gonna be torture anyway," Harry stated pessimistically. He didn't really have the brightest attitude in the room, but he still had all the reasons to call himself Peter's best friend regardless.

"Don't be silly, Harry!" Mary Jane said nudging Harry. "As long as we're all friends here, it'll be the ride of a lifetime!"

"Well, maybe you're right. It's not like we're gonna be here much longer. Still…" Harry replied.

"Don't worry, Harry," she said laying a hand on his shoulder. "I'm here for you."

Hearing this, Harry smiled. He was almost certain there was a mutual connection between the two of them and, despite the butterflies in his stomach, he almost wanted to move forward to asking her out.

_Gotta admit, both girls in my life really know their stuff_, Peter thought silently. Between Gwen and MJ he almost didn't know who he liked better, but then again, MJ seemed to have more of a thing for Harry anyway. Moreover, Gwen had his back like a guard dog did its police officer. Why else would he give up trying to pursue her? He wanted this since the end of last year.

Right then, the bell rang yet again, signaling that all students should be in class, which, for a change, Peter thankfully was on the first day - Flash had always made him late in previous years because he was either dumpster diving for his bag or stuffed in a locker. Since he was more than lucky this year to still have Gwen on his side, there was almost nothing in the world that could potentially bring him down. Whatever were to happen next, Peter was about to his final school year at a brisk pace.

* * *

Oscorp Tower was among the tallest places in Manhattan. Up there, people could view for miles the expanse that Manhattan had to offer wealthy business owners and the common resident. While the view was nice, the place was also home to what many upon first glance would consider some of the deadliest science projects known to man. Many scientists took proper credit for their work. Others had it stolen right from under them.

Such was now the case with the slender, bald, and beak-nosed Adrian Toomes. As the man in an aging brown business suit marched his way up toward the CEO's office, his mind swirled with questions and accusations he knew he ought to lay flat before his horizons. Were he to let this go any longer, he would likely lose his sanity. On the verge of breaking, Toomes approached the tall, dark double doors, shifting to the side to hastily press the button on the gold intercom speaker to speak to whoever was inside.

"This is Adrian Toomes," he spat over the speaker. "I'm here to see Norman Osborn."

"You've come to the right place," the bodyguard over the comms rang back. "Please enter."

Suddenly, the doors swung open as if by magic, Toomes looking to either side in confusion over what was happening. He had never been to the CEO's office personally, but as he walked into the room, the desk by the window dominating his view, he noted the two bodyguards standing at either side as they shut the door behind him. No longer distracted by the interesting setup, Adrian stared down the broad built businessman sporting a dark business suit, striped tie, and v-shaped wavy hairline: Norman Osborn. The man was writing papers and signing contracts presumably for new partnerships inbound. However tempted he felt to manhandle him in that moment, he chose to keep himself under control for he sought to keep his job as an employee of Oscorp no matter what.

"I trust we are in for a pleasant visit today, are we Mr. Toomes?" Norman stated somewhat sarcastically. Clearly he could care less about what he was feeling in the moment.

Unfazed by his condescending attitude, Toomes slammed his palms on the desk attempting to break Osborn of his concentration. Norman didn't even flinch at the vibration it sent across his desk.

"Care to explain why you're suddenly promoting the prospect of your so-called 'tech flight' idea?!" Adrian asked somewhat erratically.

Norman assumed a neutral position, setting down his pen and folding his hands together darkly. "Mr. Toomes, Oscorp is on the verge of a technological breakthrough, one that I invented, and you seem to be here to point fingers at me. Care to explain yourself?" he asked rather obliviously.

"The answer is simple, Osborn-"

"Mr. Osborn, if you may…"

Toomes couldn't have been more annoyed. "Right. The answer is simple, _Mr._ Osborn. Tech flight was an idea I pitched to you several months ago, which _you _rejected. And now I hear all of the sudden it's _your _idea that _you_ created?! Why don't _you _explain yourself?"

"Toomes, what you've laid before me is a serious accusation," said Osborn, examining his fingers. "Surely there's a misunderstanding here. You had the _idea_ of tech flight, I merely just laid the plans for it. It's all a matter of action vs. inaction therefore I'm the one taking credit for it."

Already, Toomes' blood pressure was through the roof - something that wouldn't be good for him in the long run - but regardless, he fought to keep himself under control. "Any sort of intellectual property theft is still theft in my book! If anything, _you're _the one who should be asking for forgiveness instead of shoving me under the rug!"

Unmoved by his accusation, Norman Osborn resumed scolding Toomes for his unwillingness to let go and accept what was done. "Toomes, I've already done so much for this company that I simply do not have time for petty accusations from lesser employees like yourself. Let's face it, you've done nothing to advance this company for the greater good. Just look where inventing things for the CIA got you."

"Mr. Osborn, I-"

"No need for further discussion, Mr. Toomes. If you never accomplished much as a young man, then you certainly won't as an old one," Osborn stated coldly, causing Toomes to slink back in defeat. "Guards, do show Mr. Toomes the door. This'll be the last time he ever sets foot on my property."

Adrian all but panicked as the bodyguards approached him from either side, his dignity slipping with every step they took toward him. They pulled him away from the desk, Toomes turning around to face Osborn once more as they led him out of the office. "Very well then, Osborn! But if I can't work _for _you, just you wait and see what more I'll do to get back at you!"

Unfazed by this threat, Norman blew lightly on his fingers, this being the last thing Adrian saw him do before walking out the doors, which the guards shut behind him. White hot rage boiling in his system, Toomes kept himself from lashing out as they took him down the hall toward the elevator. Shoving Adrian aside, the guards left him to take the elevator all the way down to ground level where he turned in his employee ID at the front desk and walked out the automatic doors that led directly outside. The old man could simply not believe where his quest to call out his former employer had taken him. There was an air of unrest as Toomes began to think of all the possibilities of how he might for real get back at Osborn for selling him out so swiftly and unfairly. One thing was for sure: he wasn't kidding when he said he would find a way to get back at him.

Staring down at the sidewalk as he strode away from the Oscorp property, Toomes hatched the bright idea to get in touch with his former friend and colleague whom he knew turned to the criminal lifestyle. Using his old flip phone, which was all he could reasonably operate, he opened the contacts and proceeded to type in "Montana". The name "Montana Schultz" appeared and he phoned him up, waiting for the ringing to end. He turned a corner into an alleyway where no one would see him when, most surprisingly, Montana answered, his Southern accent ringing true over the speaker.

"Howdy, Toomes," he stated calmly. "It's been ages since I heard a word from yas. What's the deal with you today?"

"Hello, Montana," replied Toomes. "I was just let go from my Oscorp job for accusing the higher up of stealing _my _ideas tech flight. You are very much a feared criminal amongst the underworld. Is it possible you could help me find a way to extract my revenge on him?"

"Well, I'll be it! My boys and I have been looking to steal from Oscorp to meet similar ends. With your flight suit and our stolen weapons, we could become the most unstoppable gang force this city's ever known."

Hearing this, Toomes smiled sinisterly. "Consider me one of you."

* * *

**Thanks to everyone for reading this new chapter ten months later! I am hopeful to continue soon whenever that may be!**


	3. The Flash's Pool Party

**Author's note: **_Hello again, readers! So after a while of working on this between work intervals, I've finally come out with what has to be my favorite chapter so far! See, the idea was for me to combine aspects of Spider-Man with the scenarios present in the game _Choices _(specifically _High School Story_). Fans of said game may recognize some scenes as being direct tributes to Book 1 of said series. Seeing as that story also made me nostalgic for a high school life I never had, I wanted to incorporate elements of that into this story. Hope you _Choices_ and Spider-Man fans enjoy and keep on reading!_

* * *

Things had begun to hype up as school continued throughout the week. Office staff eagerly announced the beginning of extracurriculars while the many cliques lined up to practice their respective niche. Band students practiced with their instruments and marching band routines, the cheerleaders, led by head cheerleader Elizabeth Allan - Liz for short - held tryouts and hammed up their performances, and the football jocks gave it their all in practice especially Flash. Little did everyone know of the plans the big jock had to invite them all to a party later in the week.

By Thursday, Flash had started handing out football-shaped invites to his party titled "The Flash's Pool Party" for everyone he deemed "cool". From his cafeteria clique table, Peter stared up from his meal, peering across the way as he eyed Flash handing out his specially made invites with the help of Kenny Kong and Rand who liked to stick to Flash like glue regardless of what he was doing. With his advanced hearing, Peter could just barely make out the words he was uttering to the punkish-looking kids sitting at the table._ Bringing your cronies with ya to send out an invite, eh, Flash? Well, I doubt you'd even have the decency to hand-deliver anything to our group_, Peter thought pessimistically. While he would have loved to find a way into a party like Flash's, he knew for a fact he might not have been allowed based on Flash's standards alone.

It didn't take long for Flash, Rand, and Kenny to reach the vicinity.

"Yo, nerds!" the jock exclaimed. "I know this may seem against my nature, but here! Two invites! One for Osborn, the other his lovely redhead friend!"

He handed out two separate invites to Harry and MJ, the two of them taking them eagerly to stare at. Peter leaned in to get a good look at the writing imprinted on it.

_The Flash's Pool Party_

_7401 S. Hall St., Forest Hills, Queens_

_September 7th, 7:00 p.m._

_Be there, or else!_

"You two don't get any!" Flash nosed in near Peter, breaking his concentration.

While Peter chose to remain silent, Gwen spoke up. "Hey!" she projected to Flash. "Don't I qualify as someone of importance in your sorry life? I am your tutor after all!"

"Doesn't matter, geekette! Can't have too many smart folks telling me what I can and can't do at my awesome place! You and Puny Ass Parker can go find some other party to get your geek sweat all over!" Flash huffed insultingly as he walked away with Kenny. Before Rand could speak up, Gwen ran away from the table hiding her face from everyone she passed by. Seeing this concerned Peter. He really cared about her and would give anything to not see her hurt.

_Oh no. Gwen must've taken that one pretty hard. Should I go check on her or leave her be?_ Peter thought to himself.

Just then, almost as if having his answer laid out in front of him, Rand Robertson spoke up for him. "Yo, dude, probably should go check on her. I have a feeling she didn't take that very well," the cool jock said plainly. Hearing his words sparked some reassurance that he ought to follow her wherever she went.

"Thanks, Rand," said Peter. "I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

"Don't mention it, little dude," Rand replied coolly to which Peter smiled. His nickname was the least insulting of all the jocks that he frankly didn't mind. And so, Peter got up from where he sat and left the cafeteria just in time to witness Gwen run into the girl's restroom down the hall. As uncomfortable as he felt about heading into such a vicinity, he knew, from the bottom of his young heart, that just being there for a friend would make all the difference. Taking a deep breath, he strode for and entered the girl's restroom to the sound of Gwen's sniffles as she stood by the sink, tears trickling down her cute face. Seeing her this way caused Peter's heart to ache so much he searched for the words to comfort her sensitively.

"Gwen, are you okay?" he asked simply.

She sniffled, wiping her eyes. "It's okay, Peter. I'll be fine. This isn't really the place for us to discuss this."

"I'm not going anywhere," he proclaimed lovingly. "Not when my best gal pal in the whole school is looking like this."

"I…" she stopped herself at a loss for words. "Thanks, Pete."

"No problem. Now if you don't mind, what's the biggie?"

Gwen knelt over the sink, trying to compose herself to talk through her swelled up throat. "Well… You know it's always been like this. Every year some big guy like Flash hosts some kind of party and… I just feel like a loser for never getting invited. Sure, I may be the one who's always putting her nose in a book, mastering homework and tests, and doodling pictures of my crush in my notebook, but… I just need a chance to push my boundaries. Fit in with the social norms and just be amongst the popular crowd. And if I don't do it now… Next year, I won't get to do any of that."

A tear streaked down her face. Peter couldn't help, but feel ounces of sympathy for her. He was in the exact same boat as her after all. "Trust me when I say Flash just isn't the type of jock for us. He just… He really sucks if you think about it. And, Gwen… You're not a loser. You are the sweetest person I know by a long shot. You have more than what it takes to go to a party in the first place."

She looked up from the sink, drying another tear and staring at Peter. "You really think so?"

"Sure do! I mean, you and me both, we're looking for opportunities to push our social boundaries. Since you really wanna go, I'm willing to stand by you in that."

"Thanks, Pete," she said smiling and walking over to him, arms spread. "That's really sweet of you."

She gave him a hug, Peter accepting her warm embrace. "You're welcome… Now what do you say tomorrow we crash Flash's party? Teach him a lesson in rejecting us so-called 'geeks and geekettes'?"

They pulled apart to talk to one another. "I hate to admit it, but that sounds like a great idea! As much as I know how to stand up to him, this ought to teach him a real lesson in acceptance of others!"

Peter smiled warmly at her smartness. She had the whole package he could ever want: beauty and brains. A girl like her was rare to come by. Hopefully, he'd never waste another opportunity to get to know her. Suddenly, he had his thoughts broken up by another pair of footsteps entering the restroom. _Oh, shoot! Is that…?_ Peter thought anxiously.

He turned around to face the mysterious intruder who turned out to be a brown-skinned, black haired, brown-eyed beauty of Puerto Rican descent: Liz Allan - aka head cheerleader, aka Flash's girlfriend. As much as her and Flash were close together, she was not one to be messed with. On top of that, she seemed like the last person Peter wanted to get caught in the girl's restroom with.

"Um, you are aware that this is the _girl's_ restroom, right?" she asked somewhat condescendingly.

Peter shuffled around his thoughts for a smooth answer. "As much as I wish I knew how to answer that, I really have no excuse."

"It was just… something private, that's all," Gwen stood up for him.

Liz face palmed, clearly annoyed by their responses. "Look, I don't care what you were doing back here, all I know is that you ought to go be creepy somewhere else."

"Sorry, Liz!" Peter said walking Gwen out by the shoulder. "Gwen, and I were heading back to lunch anyway. It's all good!"

Unwilling to look back at Liz, Peter led Gwen out and the two headed back to the cafeteria together. Awkward encounters with the opposite sex aside, they knew for certain they had hatched a brilliant idea in hopes to teach someone like Flash a lesson. Seeing as all the popular kids would be there, they would finally have a chance to show themselves amongst the many people they considered "cool". Nothing could top the feeling of bliss they were about to experience.

* * *

Peter and Gwen agreed to ride together to Flash's party - as opposed to Peter's alternative where he would arrive as Spider-Man and meet Gwen there. Now that Gwen had her driver's license, it made sense for her to pick up Peter who didn't have his for reasons he would not tell. As much as he wanted to rock the Spider-Man identity, he felt it was his for safekeeping in case anyone got into danger because of it. For that matter, he was glad he did not have to perform it as a party act for he would rather enjoy it as himself. Once Gwen pulled up to the street packed with cars for what seemed like blocks, the two of them knew they were in for a real treat however Flash would take it.

"This must be the place," Gwen noted, stating the obvious.

"The hell it is! Either you have great navigating skills or the place sticks out like a sore thumb!" Peter joked, attempting to build on the chemistry he already had with Gwen.

Gwen giggled, rubbing her fist into his shoulder. "Stop! You know it's the former!"

"If you say so!" Peter complied. "Did you be sure to bring your swimsuit?"

She reached into her shirt, pulling up her pink bikini top she wore underneath to show him. "Shhh, don't tell anyone, but I'm wearing it underneath."

"Alright then, it's our little secret," Peter whispered sarcastically.

The two then proceeded to exit the vehicle and stroll toward the front door unaware of the green convertible pulling up nearby. They reached the front door to the sound of muffled music inside the place and rang the doorbell. Given how loud it seemed from the inside, it would be a wonder if anyone heard them at all. To their surprise, Flash eventually opened the door all decked out in a white tank top and swim shorts with a towel sitting on his shoulders.

"Welcome to Casa del Flash-" he caught himself mid sentence, noticing who was at the door. "You nerds aren't supposed to be here! Did I not make myself clear before?"

Peter and Gwen paused, almost at a loss for words to make a good comeback. Fortunately, they were met with the unexpected arrival of Harry arriving hand-in-hand with MJ, the two of them stepping in to defend their friends. "Actually, Fred, they're a part of my clique and since you have your clique here, no doubt, I insist we keep it even between us both!"

Flash slumped, clearly defeated by Harry's ability to play into logic along with his "cool side". "Fine," Flash admitted. "But only because you still owe me for not making tryouts this year."

Harry nodded, turned back to Peter, and smiled mischievously. MJ followed, gesturing a thumbs up to Gwen whom she was confident would like this type of environment. Flash stepped aside, allowing them to enter the modern Queens home to the sound of guests mingling coupled with the booming pop music. They kicked off their shoes and made their way across the living room, past all the guests who made various comments toward each other as well as the presence of the so-called "nerds".

"So my chemistry teacher made a lot of pink jelly… Pink jelly, can you believe it?!"

"What's this? Flash just let in the nerd herd?!" exclaimed a blonde girl with a valley girl accent.

"Just wait until Liz hears about this," commented another cheerleader.

Peter couldn't help, but admire the amount of attention he was getting all of the sudden. And yet somehow, Gwen seemed to be trembling as if stricken with stage fright.

"You okay, Gwen?" he asked concerningly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied, rubbing her shoulder. "Just, early party jitters is all."

For a moment, he was almost certain she was just brushing off the issue. Immediately after, he was distracted by the prospect of party food laid out in front of him at the dining room table. He hadn't really eaten anything besides cold pizza since he got home from school. "How about we grab a bite to eat? Maybe that'll calm ya down."

Gwen turned it over in her mind a moment before giving a definitive nod. "Sure."

They meandered through the crowd of people gathered dancing to the music in the doorway connecting Flash's living room to his dining room. Peter looked behind to notice Harry and MJ talking with Flash and his cronies, but decided to leave it be, not wanting to necessarily impede on their conversation. As soon as he reached to grab from the platter of meat, cheese, and crackers Flash had laid out for them to pick from, he bumped Gwen's hand accidentally, the two of them shyly exchanging glances at one another.

"Oh, sorry," Gwen apologized.

"No, I insist, after you!" Peter incited playfully.

After Gwen complied and grabbed her plate, Peter was suddenly met with the likes of a familiar voice popping in next to his eardrums.

"Sure you're not hungry?" the Puerto Rican accent of Liz Allan asked.

"Nah, just thought I'd let my lady friend have first dibs," Peter said, turning to Liz.

"Oh, I see how it is," Liz incited teasingly.

"No, I swear, it's not what you think-" Peter replied, embarrassed by her accusation.

"You just love the way she does things, don't you?"

Peter paused, clearly revolted by her choice of words as well as the fact that she even bothered to talk to him. "Yeah, that's why I let her go first," he ultimately said, hoping Gwen didn't hear it over the party noise.

"If you think that's cool, watch what I can do," Liz offered. "Stand back."

Peter stood back and watched Liz, putting his hand onto Gwen's shoulder to get her attention. Next thing they knew, Liz picked up a cube of cheese, tossed it into the air, did a pirouette twirl, and caught it solidly in her mouth to chew. The two of them along with the most of the other party guests watched and cheered in amazement at Liz's skills she loved to show off.

"See? Years of dance practice has prepared me for this moment!" Liz boasted.

"Well, Liz… great job!" Peter complimented.

"Yeah, really snazzy!" Gwen added.

"Thank you!" Liz exclaimed cheerfully, taking a bow.

Peter was distracted by her little twirl that he almost forgot to get food for himself. Once Gwen stepped out of the way, he gathered his share of the hors d'oeuvres and pointed Gwen toward the outside in hopes to get some face-to-face time with her. Once they stepped outside, they noticed the in-crowd football players seated around the pool in their swim trunks. Gwen and Peter sat at the sun table near the pool, the umbrella folded out in case someone decided to do a huge cannonball and soak the area. Before Peter could ask Gwen how she felt about this party, suddenly a familiar African American voice called out to them from the edge of the pool.

"Yo, Einsteins!" called Rand Robertson. "Feel like taking a dip with us?"

"Not yet, Rand!" Gwen replied. "Let us eat first!"

"I wouldn't eat too slow if I were you. King Kong over there's all ramped up to take a dive!"

Rand pointed to the large, muscly, East Asian dude making his way up to the pool's diving board, his feet hitting the concrete like heavy slabs. He boarded the diving board, prepared to make his move.

"Watch out, Midtown!" Kenny Kong called out. "Here comes Kenny Kong diving into home! Cannonball!"

He sprung himself off the edge of the diving board, tucking his hands under his feet as he arched up into his jump coming down with a huge splash into the drink. The water surged up like a tidal wave toward everyone sitting around the pool, soaking the jocks as well as Peter's pant legs before he soon realized he was holding his plate in the splash zone. He looked down onto his soaking wet plate, his soggy food not looking appetizing enough to eat.

"Oh no, my plate!" Peter exclaimed. "Kenny, props to you and your cannonball, but damn you for getting my food all wet!"

Kenny came up out of the pool, spitting out the water he accidentally drank. "What did you expect, Puny Ass Parker? I'm a big guy; I make the biggest splashes known to this school!"

"That's not the only thing you're big on," Peter mocked under his breath, referring to his habit of helping Flash ruin his day like he did playing his game of monkey in the middle.

"What was that?" Kenny asked curiously.

"Nothing!" Peter shot, feigning innocence. He turned to Gwen. "I'm gonna get some more food, be right back."

Gwen turned to watch Peter get up and walk away. Not that their time was already cut short, though she knew that, before the night ended, she wanted more than ever to spend quality time with Peter. And so did he with her. As Peter walked past Harry and MJ heading out to come sit with them at the table, he thought to himself how he wouldn't pass up another opportunity to spend time with his friends amongst the in-crowd.

Once he went inside, Harry and MJ mosied up to the table to sit with Gwen.

"Party life treating you well, sister?" MJ asked her casually.

Gwen looked down, a bit nervous, but confident all the same. "It's a little overwhelming being around all these people and everything, but I'd say I'm handling it well. Hoping they don't get in the way of my time with Peter if we get the chance to settle."

"Not to worry, sister. I'm sure you'll get your chance," MJ assured.

"She's right, you know," Harry chimed in. "I mean look at us! We're standing hand-in-hand already like we've known each other, how long?"

MJ shoved Harry for being so playful. "Stop!" she spouted playfully. "You know I've known you since middle school. We practically have a solid connection, you and I."

"And that's special to you, how?" Harry asked sarcastically. Hopefully, she could tell he was being silly. "Just kidding! I know just how much this means to you."

Hearing this, MJ smiled knowing how sincere Harry meant it while Gwen watched how well they got along. She remained hopeful that, one day, her and Peter would get along like this just as naturally as they did.

Her opportunity arose as Peter returned complete with new food on a new plate. Thankfully, no huge cannonballs occurred in the while it took for the four of them to eat and chat as a friend group. Occasionally, a few others friends and party guests showed up to talk to them, diverting their conversation away from each other to whoever showed up. Soon enough, Flash, the main occasion, even showed up in his swim trunks to join the jocks in their pool pod, calling out to the "losers" on how chicken they must be to step into the pool. Naturally, Peter saw this as a challenge and stood up to recommend his friends all to remove their clothes, revealing swim trunks, and make a splash. Each of them, Gwen, MJ, and Harry, complied and removed their outside clothes right away whereas Peter went inside to change in the restroom where he could easily conceal his clothes in Flash's bathroom cabinet where no one at the party would dare to look. Hopefully, it would be safe there.

Peter darted out in his swim trunks, choosing instead the safe route of walking down the stairs as opposed to jumping in - something told him he would reveal his super strength by making a cannonball just as huge as Kong did. Wading through the water, he caught up to his friends.

"So, shall we make the most of tonight before Flash inevitably decides to rain on our parade?" Peter asked somewhat jokingly.

"I second that!" Gwen agreed.

"Wouldn't pass it up," replied MJ, her red hair somehow accentuated by her black bikini.

"Dude, I'd give my left foot to have Flash not mess this up for us!" Harry barked somewhat sarcastically. He and Flash may have been on good terms, but they didn't always get along.

"Look out below!" Flash shouted while naturally splashing into the pool in a cannonball formation. His splash literally rained down on their parade, soaking them from the top. Thankfully, they all had a good laugh over that and continued to have fun swimming and splashing around in the pool for a few minutes while Flash chased them around like a pool monster. He eventually caught up to Peter whom he dunked several times before Gwen and Harry told him to stop. Thankful that his friends had his back, Peter eventually got out of the pool a few minutes before Gwen did and the two took a couple pool towels to dry off with. Some jokes and playful retorts were exchanged before Gwen put out a special offer.

"Hey, I noticed there's a spot between this yard and the next where we can lay down and stargaze. Care to go with me?" Gwen offered eagerly.

Knowing they wanted to spend time alone apart from everyone else, Peter could hardly resist such an offer and accepted unconditionally. "Lead the way!" he replied enthusiastically. "But first, let me get my clothes."

After Peter ran inside to grab his shirt - which thankfully hadn't been discovered with his Spider-Man suit - he met with Gwen back outside who had thrown her normal clothes back on over her swimsuit and she took his hand to lead him to a small cluster of pine trees stationed between Flash's yard and the next. Taking in the faint noise of the party behind them, they lied down on their backs and stared up at the starry sky above them. The bright glows of all the distant gaseous orbs in the infinite black above them served as a reminder as to how infinite the universe was as well as their futures, which they were about to embrace before long. For now, though, they were content to have each other during this slow moment in time.

"Tell me, how cool is this view?" Gwen asked anticipatedly.

"Too cool to describe, just like you!" Peter replied lovingly.

"Peter, you are too sweet," she complimented. "I honestly couldn't imagine life with anyone besides you."

Peter paused for a moment. Whether this was a friendly nudge on the shoulder or a romantic offer was beyond him, but, whatever the case he knew he ought to take it slow. "You just can't get enough of me can you?" he boasted.

"Hard to deny it, Pete. Just the mere fact that we're the star light from years ago is just now reaching us here on Earth, it reminds me of how far we've come."

"I'm only certain you're about to recount our years since middle school?"

"Yep! Back then I was nothing, but a shy nerd girl who wore glasses, barely talked, and hardly even looked up from my book to even look at people. You, on the other hand, changed all that. Ever since they partnered us up in seventh grade science, I just wanted to know you more and you gave me plenty of opportunities to step outside my shell and talk to someone. And now, look at us! Neither of us wear glasses anymore and we're finally going to cool kids' parties after all these years."

"Couldn't agree more," Peter said, his hand falling by Gwen's in a moment's notice. Surprisingly, she didn't shirk away. With all the mental strength in his system, Peter reached out for Gwen's hand and she instantly took his, squeezing it and rubbing it softly. He couldn't have been more giddy and at ease all at once.

"I'm glad you came into my life, Pete. I haven't been more at ease ever since," she said turning her face toward him.

"Yeah?" he asked, facing her.

"Yeah."

The couple looked deeply into each other's eyes, Gwen's deep blue eyes resembling pools of water calling Peter to dive deep into a love relationship with her. If they were any closer, he might as well kiss her. Suddenly, a loud bang fired off in the distance, startling Gwen while Peter barely flinched due to Spider Sense alerting him to the sound moments before it happened. Gwen gasped.

"What the hell was that?!" she exclaimed.

Peter broke eye contact, looking around to think of an excuse. "Dunno, but… Oh, man. All that swimming after eating - my stomach. I really gotta go, don't follow!"

And just like that, Peter pulled his hand away from the one person he really wanted to get to know. This wouldn't be the last time he ever saw her, but hopefully she would understand his excuse and allow it to slide for now. Disappointing as it was the abandon his potential soulmate during an intimate moment, he simply could not allow danger to pour into his personal life, even while he was having fun.

* * *

**So what was the explosion all about and what will happen next? Find out next time on _Marvelous Web-head_!**


	4. Rallying Resources

Regretfully, Peter ran inside to check if his costume's hiding spot had been compromised. A wave of relief overcame him when he rushed into Flash's restroom to find that no one had spotted him nor did they discover where he hid his suit. Assuming he was in the clear, he locked the door and threw on his suit, pausing to make sure no one was trying to barge in. He opened the door and checked to make sure the coast was clear; thankfully, the lights were off in the bathroom hallway and a window was open just nearby. He leapt across the room and tumbled out the window, not caring about who might have seen him, and swung across the neighborhood en route for where the explosion took place.

_Whoever's blowing things up at this time of night really ought to pipe down - seriously, they're worse than what Flash's neighbors may think of him right now. Now, where did that noise come from?_

Under his mask, Peter blanketed the area with his Spider Sense to detect where the ruckus might have come from. The more he leapt over buildings and got creative with his web shooters swinging and zipping at a low altitude, the more he sensed an infrared wave of explosive residue emitting nearby. He soared over a building and landed at a nearby park, his Spider Sense and smell guiding him to the nearest baseball diamond all lit and deserted presumably because nobody was hosting a game - either that or the explosion scared people off. For the most part, the baseball diamond seemed pretty chill despite the burning smell indicating that Peter was close to the source of the explosion.

Then, as he was walking, it pulled into his view: a small crater of dust marking where the explosion struck just a few minutes ago. Were it not for whoever did this, he would still be gazing into Gwen's eyes seeing some sort of future with her. Instead, he had to settle for second rate secret life material that had been gifted to him the moment he decided to use his powers for good.

_Odd that someone would go blowing holes in the ground the size of a kiddie pool. But who, or what, could've done such a thing?_

Staring up from the crater, Spidey's Spider Sense started blaring inside his head once more, alerting him to the presence of a lone deep sea-colored van revving its engines, turning on its brights, and zooming across the turf straight towards him. Although momentarily caught like a deer in the headlights, Spidey thought fast and leapt over the oncoming van barreling its way toward him and turned to shoot a webline toward its rear bumper. The web latched on with ease as Spidey touched foot on the ground and ran to keep up with the ever increasing speed of the van as it drove its way through the diamond's fence, busting it open. From the back of the vehicle, a band of three criminals busted the door open, leaving Spidey bewildered and unable to keep up at the same time. He just barely had the chance to notice the criminals were firing heavy seismic blasts at him the closer they drove into the neighborhood, himself just barely managing to dodge them as he let go of his webline.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed, doing a three-sixty in midair as he shot out dual weblines to propel himself forward onto the van. He flipped to land on the van's roof, himself appearing a blur of red and blue that just disappeared into midair. "Peek-a-boo!" he spouted, looking over and down into the back compartment.

The criminals, however, wouldn't relent; they continued to shoot at him airs of seismic blasts that rang throughout the night, Spidey being forced to dodge them effortlessly as he crawled his way around the vehicle. In an effort to swipe what they were shooting, Spidey attached himself to the van's swinging door and shot a web that effectively snatched the device from the criminal's hands. Unable to examine it any further than a glance, Spidey fell to the street the moment another criminal shot the door off its hinges. The door skidded across the road emitting sparks, but Spidey held on for dear life, stood up, and spat out two more webs that attached to either side of the bumper. In a water ski-like fashion, Spidey swerved and dodged around the oncoming blasts, steering his makeshift surfboard as the van turned a corner and caused him to drill through a row of garbage cans lining the curb as well as someone's mailbox.

"Sorry!" the Web-head called out, still not used to causing property damage in the midst of his hi-jinks.

The more the thugs' blasting zoomed past his face, the less Spidey could focus on his surroundings. Thankfully, though, Spider Sense picked up an incoming metal trailer for him to potentially soar across the sky in order to keep up with the van before it caused any more collateral damage. Dodging additional blasts, he lined himself up with the ramp, sliding his water ski-like door across the freshly mowed grass and up the conveniently placed trailer. His silhouette zoomed across the half moon in the sky, highlighting his figure as he leaped off his makeshift board and dove for the nearest street lamp. With an acrobatic flip around the hanging light, he dove for the front of the van, the criminals in the back no longer bearing sight of him. The wind breezing through him, he used his webs to yank off the front hood of the van, landed on the windshield, and shot out several webs to jam the engine, not caring about the complaints the criminals were spouting. The van ultimately broke down with a whimper of the engine, Spidey leaping off it and turning around the face his adversaries.

"Oh, that's it, you asked for it!" the driver in a cowboy hat said, loading his standard handgun. The criminals in the back followed, arming dangerously their seismic weapons.

"Ooh, this is the part where I slam you all into next week; my favorite bit of the evening!" Spidey quipped, readying his fists.

The gang members fired their weapons, Spidey flipping around the place and onto the nearest street lamp as they fired and took it down. With a little ingenuity, the Web-slinger shot a web straight into the nearest seismic weapon's firing mechanism, causing it not only to jam, but also to backfire onto the criminal wielding it, the weapon blowing up in his face.

"That's what ya get for messing with something you don't understand!" Spidey spouted, backflipping to avoid another seismic blast from the only remaining thug wielding one - the other two were wielding standard weapons at this point. The shots fired were enough to create more craters in the ground where Spidey hopped around on, kicking up dust and debris that the neighbors were sure to notice by morning. Another standard bullet whizzed by him, signaling him to line up his web shooters, fire a long line, and pull the gun from the leader's hand - at least he appeared to be the leader based on Peter's judgment. Dropping down, he kicked the criminal in the face and webbed him to the ground before moving on to his next target. A few clocks across the head led to Spidey pummeling the next criminal without even taking his weapon. Three out of four mooks down, the final one appeared to fire up his weapon, the mechanism lighting up with a blue glow.

"Not so fast!" Spidey halted, putting his hand behind his back and pulling the criminal's seismic gun creatively from his hand before he could fire it off. The Web-head then proceeded to drop kick the last criminal and web him up with ease.

"You!" the Western-themed criminal spouted. "Don't think this is over! Montana will have your head for this!"

"Aw, I'm sorry. I missed the part where I'm supposed to lose to the likes of you cowboy criminals, or whoever you are, that keeps showing up!" Spidey fired back, soon after the device landed directly in his hand.

"Boy, if you knew what's stirring in the criminal underworld, you'd be sorry you ever messed with us!"

"Puh-lease, if you guys had the common sense to settle down and make friends, you probably wouldn't have resorted to being criminals in the first place," Spidey retorted. "Why do you even need this stuff anyway?"

The criminal stayed silent, nodding his head to point toward the van. Spidey turned to notice the plain blue words plastered all over the side of the van: "OSCORP". Beneath it read their famous tagline: "Realizing the future one day at a time". The mere fact that he didn't notice this during the chase was more than enough to make Spidey undoubtedly curious. He examined the device to make sure the tech matched with what he saw showcased there on an average day.

"Stealing from the best, I see. You know, if you're gonna steal weapons like this, do me a favor and don't dress like a cowboy. Makes ya look too heroic next to, you know, someone like me!" Spidey boasted.

"You know, this'd all be better if you just-" the criminal started before getting cut off by Spidey's webs reaching his mouth.

"Ah ah ah, please hold all retorts for when the cops arrive," the Web-head joked. "Thank you for flying the Air Spider! Enjoy your stay in jail!"

He spun a web and swung away, not caring about the muffled criminal trying to make a comeback. As Spider-Man ran away across someone's roof, he plopped down on their gutter, trying to process all he had just witnessed. The same company that created the spider that fatefully bit him was responsible for developing seismic weapons beyond everyone's comprehension. And now these criminals he kept encountering wanted them presumably for personal gain - or worse, to find a way to take him down. Knowing Harry's dad, Norman, wouldn't approve of this, Peter pondered what would be the responsible thing to do: whether he should tell Oscorp or not about this incident. Then again, they'd probably figure it out eventually. For all he knew, this may not have been an isolated incident.

Suddenly, Peter had his thoughts broken up by his phone buzzing and ringing, his 1980s-inspired ringtone of the song "Take On Me" reaching him as some of the best music to his ears. He checked the screen to find that Harry was now calling him, presumably to check up on him after he left. Already he felt bad for abandoning his friends at the party so how could things have gotten any worse? Bottling his feelings, he answered promptly.

"Yo, dude!" Peter answered, pulling up his mask over his mouth.

"Hey, Pete! Where'd ya go?" Harry asked on the phone speaker.

Peter paused, trying to think of a good excuse. "...After all that dunking Flash suffered me through, I needed a breather. You know, take a walk around the neighborhood."

"Is that so?" Harry answered casually. "Are you coming back?"

"Pretty soon now that I've gotten some air actually."

"I wouldn't, man. I overheard Flash and his gang scheming to humiliate you for up and abandoning his so-called 'sick ass' party like that."

"Humiliate me, how?" Peter inquired.

"The classic water bucket gag you used to see on our favorite shows. Says he wants to make it a boomerang on Instagram to give you what's coming to ya!"

Peter sighed, regretful he even left the party in the first place. "Well, thanks for the heads up, man. I really owe ya one!"

"Anything for ya, man. Just… try not to do this again or he'll really have a problem with ya, okay?"

"Understood, bro. Talk to ya later!"

Peter hung up, burying his face in his sweaty gloved palms. His one chance to actually leave an impression at one of Flash's parties and he blew it. On top of that, he could no longer return to apologize to Gwen for up and leaving their potentially romantic moment. If she didn't previously know him for running away from an opportunity to relate to her, she did now. Sure, she was kind and understanding whenever he did something wrong, but this may have been a whole new level of mistrust. Hopefully, he could recover from this somehow.

* * *

Gwen sat all by herself in the midst of the large party crowd at Flash's poolside. She couldn't believe it. After all the anticipation, all the interest Peter had displayed in the days building up to this that he would just leave her in their first truly romantic moment. This was completely unlike him for all she knew. In the years before this he would never do such a thing. Did he care for her like she hoped?

She stared over at Harry and MJ holding hands with their feet in the water and sighed. That was her with Peter moments before he left. With what Harry told her, it sounded like Peter wasn't coming back. She would most definitely have a few words to say to him before long.

Speaking of words, Flash said a few choice ones that made her skin crawl. "Move over, my kin! The Flash has got a date with destiny!" he said spraying breath freshener looking somewhat in her direction. He couldn't have meant her, could he? Surely enough, he walked past her and headed for the other side of Harry where MJ sat. "Yo, redhead! Care to give the Flash a little taste of your ginger ale? I promise to pay ya back when I get the dough!"

Gwen didn't even have to look at MJ to know she must have been feeling uncomfortable. A no nonsense Harry stood up and nudged Flash away. "Back off, Flash! Can't you see MJ and I are having an intimate moment?"

"Says who, Osborn? No one can resist 'the Flash', not even other people's girls," Flash protested, standing up in Harry's face.

"_Hello_, MJ and I happen to be almost exclusive! So why don't you back the hell off and leave us alone?"

"Hey, just because you and I are on good terms don't mean we're even!"

"Oh, so now it's about getting even, huh?"

Gwen couldn't hardly take where their conversation seemed to be going. The intensity boiled up to a solid eight in the span of a few words.

"You wanna get even? Fine! I'll fight you for her!" Flash proclaimed, throwing up his fists.

At that point, Gwen could no longer take it so she hopped up and strode over to the two would-be combatants to stand and put her arms between them. "Guys! This is a party, we should all be getting along fine."

"Says you, nerdette! Osborn should be sorry for stealing what could have been _my _girl had we gone out any more than just the Spring Formal last year!" Flash tried to justify to no avail.

"Okay, two things… three actually," she said pointing her fingers at his chin. "One: _he _has MJ. Two: your mom wouldn't want you fighting anyone just as much as the school principal wouldn't. And three: _you _have Liz! You'll be lucky if I don't tell her what you're doing trying to cheat on her and all."

Submitting to her words of wisdom, Flash lowered his fists, faking a smile and everything. "Nonsense! I was just kidding that was all!" he said, feigning innocence.

Gwen facepalmed. "Clearly, you're not, otherwise I wouldn't have had to stand between you both. Tell you what, if you don't say you're sorry, I _will _tell Liz what you're up to!"

He slumped his head in defeat, clearly at a loss for words on how to counter that. "Fine! I'm sorry!" he said forcefully. "I just did this because QB1 wanted me to do a truth or dare and I chose dare!"

"Mmhmm," nodded Gwen, folding her arms. "Now tell _Harry _you're sorry."

She stepped out of the way, revealing Harry at the other end standing amazed at Gwen for her negotiating skills.

"I'm sorry, Osborn," Flash proclaimed, rubbing his neck. "All this was because of a stupid dare. Just… don't go telling _anyone_, okay?"

"Your secret's safe with me, man!" Harry replied, shaking his hand.

"Good 'cause if you do, you'll be the one I dunk next!"

Harry smiled slyly at this, feeling as though that was a shallow threat in his case - compared to someone like Peter, that is. Witnessing this play out, Gwen could hardly believe herself. She could easily stand up to and negotiate with the likes of bullies like Flash while defending her friends simultaneously. If she had anyone to credit, it would be her police commissioner father who stood for the law no matter the circumstance. What would she ever do without him?

As in accomplishment she stood, MJ approached Gwen to lay a hand on her shoulder. "Thanks for sticking up to me, sister. I really owe you one!" she promised confidently.

"Don't mention it," she replied. "I mean at least you have your man. I, on the other hand…"

MJ stopped her, noting her lowered head. She thankfully overheard what was making her upset. "Don't worry about it, sister. Peter will be back on Monday! You can talk to him then, I promise."

"Yeah, but… What if he… doesn't care or something?"

"Trust me when I say it's no big deal! He just might have some things to work out is all. You never know, sticking by him could lead to something special."

Raising her head, Gwen nodded shyly, hopeful MJ knew what she meant.

"I'm gonna go join in on this truth or dare game. Hopefully no one makes _me _flirt with another guy," MJ said before turning to walk inside.

What a wonder. That Gwen would be the one to help her friends and receive help in return. If she didn't have MJ to guide her inner voice, she wouldn't have known what it was like to navigate guy trouble together with someone. While still a bit wavering as to whether she could trust Peter or not, she stared up at the half moonlit night pondering what could come of this if she just stuck with him.

* * *

The Criminal Deputies had set up shop in a secret underground weapons testing facility at an old military target practice killhouse somewhere up the road from Big Sky Billiards in Harlem. From the outside, a pair of Oscorp trucks pulled up to the curb in the rundown section of the ghetto neighborhood, but the occupants were not the people you would think. From within the vehicles emerged two separate bands of Criminal Deputies occupants, carrying with them an abundance of Oscorp manufactured weapons they stole from the hijacked vehicles. Despite what it took to score these weapons, each of them were certain they scored big and that Montana would be happy.

"Oh, man! Score plenty for the Criminal Deputies!" announced the gang leader.

"Yeah, it wasn't easy, but we knocked those guards clean out and drugged them with amnesia drugs. They'll never remember what they were carrying!" boasted another.

"Hopefully, but lest we not forget this is all to fuel Montana's operation," another crook reminded them. "They're not for us to keep."

"Tell that to his newest colleague," said the leader. "I overheard him talking with Montana. Said he joined up to get back at someone who stole his ideas."

"Whatever that means, let's hope his ideas are genius enough to take us even higher!" another criminal responded, having little idea how much his sense his statement would make in regards to what Montana's newest colleague was capable of.

The bands of criminals joined together to walk down the stairs that led to a door. The leader knocked on it to make his presence known and, soon enough, was greeted by a confident Montana standing at the door without his cowboy hat. "I trust y'all have what I instructed ya to steal?" Schultz stated with his arms crossed, hopeful he could trust his cohorts to do the job.

"We stole two trucks worth of weapons like you said," the cohort said, presenting his fellow gang members holding the weapons in hand. "Unfortunately, the third operation we sent over to Queens fell silent and we've not heard from them since."

"Well, I'll be. Naturally, this must mean the bug is on our tail," Montana hypothesized. "If we wanna get back at him, we ought to act quickly. Come with me and let's test these weapons to see what we can do with 'em. I have a special something to present to y'all when you're ready."

Montana led his kin into the killhouse where the shooting range was set up to display several targets at a few of the stations. Each of them calibrated their weapons to fire off at maximum toward each target, which shattered into smithereens across the concrete shooting range floor.

"Yee, doggy! Blowing up cars just got a whole lot easier!" one of them called out.

As Montana sat shadily at a card table nearby, peering at everyone from under his cowboy hat, he fiddled with his newest creation he brought in a handbag: a red and yellow quilted-patterned suit he would utilize to protect himself from the blasts of the seismic weapons. While many of his "boys" were handling the devices just fine, he personally feared that, without protection, he'd lose to any and all opposition trying to manage the weapon. And so, as a self-taught engineer with a background in tech management, he decided to take matters into his own hands to ensure that he would not lose. With that, he stood up to announce what he had planned.

"Boys! Y'all keep playing with those weapons, but try not to bring down the house on us," he ordered. "I'm gonna be right back and try on this fancy new suit I invented. Be right back!"

Whilst they nodded and fiddled with their weapons, the front door opened, revealing an old, Caucasian, bald male somewhere in his sixties carrying a flip phone and a roll of blueprints. Judging by the look in his eyes, he had important business to attend to here.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for Montana," he announced, clearing his throat. "Has anyone seen him?"

The criminals stared up from their weapons to look the bald man in the eye. One of them pointed to the back room where Montana had gone a few moments prior.

"He's in the back preparing something," the criminal explained. "He'll be right with you."

"Excellent! He'll be happy to know that Adrian Toomes of all people has arrived to debrief with him," the man came forth.

"Adrian Toomes? Like that guy that got cheated out of his company Adrian Toomes?" another criminal asked.

"Yes, b-Wait! How were you informed?" Adrian inquired.

"We overheard you talking with Montana on the phone and wondered who it was he was bringing in," the lead criminal informed. "Never expected someone of your age and physique to be in on it."

Clearly insulted, Toomes tensed up, but breathed slowly as to calm his interiors. He talked and walked inside, heading toward the card table as he did so. "I will let you know that I may be an old, slender man, but I am neither a patient or intelligent one. I've simply joined with your leader to take back what is rightfully mine and force the head of Oscorp to apologize for stealing _my _ideas."

The criminals all gave him odd looks as if they had never heard of such a motivation prior to now. "Wow, tough life," one of them spouted. "If Montana's willing to help you, good on him. We're all trying to take things from Oscorp to become the biggest, most powerful gang on the streets."

"Perfect!" Adrian said to himself. "This will only enhance my methods for getting back at Osborn tenfold - by stealing what _he_ created _without_ prior ideation!"

Just then, Montana emerged in his red and yellow quilted-patterned suit, armed with a pair of gauntlets on him, looking ready to trounce anyone that tried to bar his way.

"Howdy, Toomes!" Montana greeted. "Was wondering if y'all'd find the right address."

"Pleased to know you're here, Montana," Adrian replied. "What is it you're wearing?"

"Just a little somethin' I brewed up myself in the lab: a little suit to protect me from my own power when fighting the likes of someone like the bug," Montana explained. "Figured if I'm gonna be leader of you sorry mooks, I oughta pack the firepower _and _the protection!"

"Flashy!" exclaimed his associate.

"Care to give us a little demonstration?" another asked.

"Don't mind if I do, boys!" Montana complied, walking toward the nearest shooting range station as the previous occupants stepped aside to ensure he had a clear path. Assuming a firm stance, he released the safety on the gauntlet's mechanism, revving up their firepower as they began to glow a bright green. From the gauntlets sprayed double tubes of compressed air that aimed for the nearest target that popped down from the ceiling. The target shattered with ease and Montana didn't even flinch from the impact of firing.

"Whoa!" exclaimed his associates.

"Excellent work!" called out the leader of the previous gang.

"I am impressed, Schultz," commented Toomes. "I knew for certain that your engineering skills were something to behold. Now I'm convinced you may just be what we need to tear apart our enemies."

"Oh, really?" said Montana turning around. "And what is it you'll wear when we're out there stealing weapons and destroying all that bar our way to greatness?"

"My one and only signature: tech flight," he said displaying the blueprints he brought along. The schematics represented the mechanical turbine-powered wings he had invented to try on himself.

"Interesting," a criminal commented.

"Incredible!" said another.

"Indeed," Toomes continued. "I had intended for this to be my means of transporting myself to work should I become older and more disabled. However, it would seem as though Osborn's left me no choice, but to turn to a life of crime to ensure he's brought down properly."

"I hear ya, Toomes," said Montana. "If there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that our enemies won't know what hit 'em, especially that 'bug' we keep throwing down with."

Toomes had now heard the term "bug" twice and scratched his chin. Although he had heard rumors of such, he was still curious to know more. "Tell me… Who is this bug you keep referring to?"

* * *

**I think it's implied where that would go from there. Apologies for the lack of Author's Note in this; I will only be using it to check in every so often from here on. In the meantime, enjoy what chapters I come out with for the time being!**


	5. Homework Hangout

**Author's note:**_Hello, folks! It's been a while, but this story's still happening! While the ongoing virus situation I probably don't need to spell out has given many people more free time, it's made me a whole lot more busy. Thankfully, though I've found some of my own to write this next chapter and hopefully give you guys something to look forward to with this story as it continues. In the meantime, enjoy and feel free to leave a review on what you think could happen next!_

* * *

The following Monday couldn't have been more anticipated for Peter. Already a week after Labor Day, he knew he needed this opportunity to apologize to Gwen for abandoning her at Flash's party. Guilty as he felt about it, he knew he needed the remedy in order for their potential relationship to work. However guilty he felt about this would never compare to the guilt he felt about Uncle Ben - hopefully nothing he ever faced would ever match that again. At the very least, he knew Gwen was rather understanding and forgiving.

For some reason, though, he did not find her sitting in their usual "morning study corner" at the window sill near the front of the school. Aroused with concern, Peter looked around for the nearest friendly face to make contact with and found the familiar red hair and green eyes of MJ at her locker nearby. If there was anyone he could trust with Gwen's whereabouts, it had to be her - they were tightly knit as besties after all.

Fueled with hope and confidence, Peter approached his girl next door friend. "Hey, MJ! Have you seen Gwen anywhere?" he asked just as soon as he reached into her locker to place one book adjacent to the other.

"Funny you should ask, Tiger," she replied smoothly. "She was just here stating she needed a new library book to read for the next week or so."

Of all the places Peter could've guessed her to be, that would be the next most likely. "Thanks, MJ. I knew I could trust you on that," he thanked her kindly. "W-would you be willing to offer advice on what to say to her about the party? I feel really bad that I left without telling her where I was going."

MJ didn't have to think much on that subject as she was practically an expert on friendly advice. "Just say you have no excuse for leaving and promise to make it up to her. That's what I'd do if I were you."

"Right, that should work - hopefully," Peter stated under competently.

"Trust me when I say she should be cool with you. K, Tiger?"

"You had me at 'Tiger'. Whatever you say, MJ. Thanks!"

The two smiled at one another. If there had been anyone he could trust in helping him deal with friendships and potential romantic relationships it had to be her. Plus, she had a way with words especially when it came to using his nickname, "Tiger" - a hallmark of their childhood when Peter's best animal impression was that of a tiger, which coincidentally became their school mascot come high school. Her reassurance was a boost of confidence to Peter's system.

He waved farewell to her for now and shuffled his way through the morning crowd en route for the library. Upon reaching the double doors at the entrance, he entered quietly to witness various student groups, including the jocks and cheerleaders, talking softly at the long tables scattered throughout the place. He managed to slip by Flash and his crew to find Gwen standing in the philosophy section of the bookshelves. Staring quietly at the Socrates collection she picked up, Gwen barely noticed Peter moseying up to her until he reached her peripherals.

"Hey, Gwen, staying company?" Peter spoke up.

"Just checking out a book for now," she stated casually. "If only _someone _would tell me that much information when they leave me by _myself _at a party!"

Peter was hardly surprised to hear this sassy attitude from her. There were times he could tell he rubbed her the wrong way and now was one of those times. "Listen, I'm really sorry about the party Friday. I really did get sick and felt the need to walk it off afterward," he lied, attempting to lock eyes with her once more. "I should've told you, but was afraid you'd judge me for being… you know, a weakling or something, and… It wasn't right for me to leave you alone. I have no excuse. I hope you can forgive me."

Gwen's eyes met his and, at last, it was as if their connection had restored. "You're forgiven. Just try not to do that again. Are we clear?"

"Clear as a bell, Ms. Stacy!"

Gwen giggled hearing him address her so formally. He knew she couldn't resist his awkward charm. "Very well, then. Now would you be willing to help me choose what new book to invest in? I may love science and all, but I kinda have a hell of a hankering for philosophy right now."

"Sure, I mean Socrates _is _great and all, but, if I were you, I'd go with Plato's works," Peter shared. "Ever heard of _Allegory of the Cave_?"

"Sounds familiar, but what's it about?"

"It's about these prisoners that live in a cave their whole lives, their only source of light being the sunlight shining in from the outside. For years, they have to guess the shadows of people and things coming by until, one day, a prisoner escapes and experiences the outside world for himself. Feel free to read on if you wanna learn what it all represents!" Having read the piece before and said all that, Peter couldn't help, but wonder if that represented his life prior to Spider-Man.

"Sounds fascinating!" remarked Gwen. "I'm sure it'll give me good insight to use prior to college next year!"

The two then proceeded to head to the front desk checkout lady where Peter mustered up the courage to ask Gwen something he had in mind to make it up to her. "Say, would you mind if we, you know, did some homework time, like, together this week maybe?" he asked rather wordily, trying not to trip over himself. "If it helps, I'm willing to help make it up to you for Friday that way."

"Hey, now, I wouldn't say you _have _to make it up to me… Okay, maybe a little bit, but to me, it would just be another homework hangout, just me and you!" Gwen said, nudging him on the shoulder. "Sounds good?"

"As good as my Aunt May makes pancakes if not better!" Peter remarked cleverly.

Once more, Gwen giggled. Hearing this made Peter proud to make her laugh no matter the situation. She stepped forward to have her book scanned as Peter stood behind. At that point, he couldn't help, but hear giggling behind him.

"_Parker and Stacy, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!_" sang out the voice of Flash behind Peter, who turned to face his tormentor and his gang with a stern look.

"L-O-L, Flash! Don't jinx it!" Peter retorted, hoping to God that Gwen didn't hear that last part.

"Hardy har har!" uttered Flash mockingly much to Liz's amusement. "So you've come to accept my taunts as part of your life, haven't ya?"

"You know, I still look forward to the day you're at some cushy ivy league school _away _from _my _field of study… _and _vision!"

"_Excuse me_, University of Texas is _not_ cushy!" Flash debunked. "_Plus_, I have a full ride scholarship there!"

"Whatever, Flash! Good luck becoming the next big quarterback in the NFL! Maybe you can have someone like the Hulk as your linebacker!"

By this point, they were raising their voices above the general library sounds. "Hey, now! I don't see you getting a date with someone like Black Widow, do I-"

"_Shhhhh_!" the librarian silenced Flash and Peter.

"Right, sorry," Flash whispered at the librarian. He turned back to face Peter and stuck his middle finger up slyly. Annoyed, Peter flipped _him _the bird before Gwen strolled by to latch onto his shoulder.

"Just ignore him. Let's get to class!" she said sternly.

_This girl certainly knows how to break up a potential fight_, Peter thought to himself. If anything, there was something cathartic about him using other superheroes to insult Flash's dream. Sure, the Hulk might have been big and strong, but, according to Peter, he was as dumb as a rock at times. While he hadn't met any major superheroes - most of whom revealed their secret identities to the world - quite yet, Peter wondered how long he could keep his identity under wraps before he maybe needed to reveal it to someone. Whenever that may be, hopefully he wouldn't blow his cover on Flash like he nearly did in their fight the year before.

* * *

Later in the day, school let out and everyone dispersed from the classrooms to head for the buses and cars parked in front. Alone by herself, Gwen carried her favorite subject book - physics - with her toward the car she knew would be parked down a ways from the buses and cars. Whereas most students had regular cars to hop into, Gwen knew to look for a blue and white NYPD car topped with a blue and red light that flashed only in the state of emergency. She knew she would most likely appear to be getting arrested, though she was rather used to it.

Soon enough, she found the specially marked car she was looking for and a familiar antagonistic voice called out to her from a distance. "Hey, Stacy girl!" called the intimidating voice of Kenny Kong who was standing next to his dark skinned girlfriend. "What did you do this time?"

"Haha, very funny, Ken!" Gwen returned sarcastically. "Like I would get arrested for doing nothing, but attending school like the good girl I am!"

"Just saying! Flash told me to tell you at some point!" Kenny admitted.

Gwen rolled her eyes. One thing was for sure, she wouldn't miss this next year.

She stepped into the front passenger seat of the cop car to be greeted with the profile of her aging, uniformed police captain father who smiled, excited to see her. "Way to return the sarcasm, pumpkin," complimented the gruff voice of John Stacy, laying a hand on her shoulder. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say I taught you well."

"You sure did, dad. Thanks!" she said.

"Don't mention it," replied the captain, igniting the car and driving through the busy streets of Manhattan. "So how was your day today?"

"Average, but good. I got a new philosophy book upon Peter's suggestion; I'm loving it so far!"

"Terrific! You two resolve things from the party the other night?"

Gwen was slightly taken aback by the mention of the incident. She had mentioned to him Peter leaving her at the party, but not their potentially romantic endeavor prior to. "I think it's safe to say that he and I won't be separating any time soon. We're too tightly knit to split apart so easily."

"That's good to hear! Mind you I do think you two get along well the few times I've seen you together."

"Glad you noticed," Gwen admitted shyly. "About that, there's kind of something going on between me and Peter."

"And what might that be?"

"Well…" she continued, searching for words. "There was this moment at the party where he and I sort of… Held hands and it's kind of been building towards this a while. I don't know, dad, I really do like him, but with what he did Friday night, I'm not so sure I should, you know, keep at it."

"Nonsense, pumpkin!" John remarked. "That was a one-time thing, hopefully, and if he really felt sorry about it, would he continue to do it?"

Gwen nodded. "No he wouldn't. That's what I hope won't happen."

"Uh-huh, and if me and your mother could work it out together despite my busy pursuit in law enforcement, surely you might have some chance to work it out with Peter despite whatever's on his busy schedule. Does that sound good?"

"Well, yes. I mean, you _are_ law enforcement so, I guess, whatever you say goes!"

"Damn straight!" the captain boasted. "And if you keep this up, you might be good with real romantic relationships as your sister is acting like she's in one."

He was right. Her sister, while not quite as far as her in terms of love life, did her utmost to pretend she was in a relationship on stage with guys she could care less about. If Gwen were just as good at navigating real relationships, surely there must have been something to be found in sticking with Peter. And her father was more than happy to provide her with a good perspective using his life as an example. Without him, Gwen almost wouldn't know what to do when it came to boys.

* * *

Days passed and Peter found himself sitting in Aunt May's car on a Wednesday en route to Gwen's apartment in downtown Manhattan. News reports had shown that other superheroes - among them the Avengers - were passing through the area so, to avoid exposure himself, Peter decided to keep a low profile by riding to his best gal pal's place the old fashioned way. Of course, he would never tell Aunt May he was Spider-Man, but still, she found this rather unusual for Peter to be asking for a ride at seventeen when she knew him full well to take the bus.

It didn't take long for Peter to speak up about why he wanted her along for the ride. "Aunt May, I need your help."

"What is it, Peter dear?" she asked concerningly. "Nervous about this little 'date' of yours?"

"No, it's not _that_… Okay, maybe it is, but I'm just afraid if, you know… What if I send the wrong impression to Gwen? I mean, I've known her for five years now, but as of the party it looks like we're getting closer and I just… I don't wanna send the wrong message, say, if I mess up interacting with her dad or something. Sure, Mr. Stacy knows me well enough, but I wanna make sure even he's supportive of us two… you know, getting together and all."

"Oh, Peter. You've always been so curious about impressing the opposite sex. Even when you met MJ all those years ago you wanted her to be your 'princess' on your 'dragon slaying adventures'! Nothing ever came of you two that I know, but still remember the number one rule for a relationship at this stage: _always_ keep her away from the bed."

Secretly, Peter liked the idea of that thought for someday, but gave a childish gag to signify he didn't want to go there yet. "Aunt May, I don't wanna go _that _far!" he said with disdain. "I'm just… Interested in taking the next step, that's all!"

"Oh, silly me! I was just joking, that's all!" Aunt May boasted. "Will you ever learn to appreciate your aunt's sense of humor?"

"Only when you stop using innuendos to set my relationship boundaries," Peter joked back.

"That'll be the day," she said soon as they pulled up to the apartment sitting somewhere near the boundaries of Central Park. "Here's your stop. Now, run along now, your homework isn't gonna do itself!"

"Sure won't, Aunt May!" Peter said, slipping out of the car with his book bag. "You have a nice day and everything!"

Peter looked on as Aunt May's 2004 Volkswagen drove off down the busy street, leaving Peter to do his best to impress the one person he knew he wanted to be with. Despite her occasionally being silly with her advice, he trusted whatever she said would stick the landing seeing as she herself was a girl. _Gotta get advice from a girl _about _a girl, I suppose,_ Peter thought proudly.

He entered the apartment complex with joy and took the elevator to the seventh floor where he knew them to be located in the twelfth room. Of course, he could have easily climbed up the side of the building and took the fire escape, but, above all else, he knew he had to look inconspicuous. Once he reached the door displaying the numbers "712", he knocked anticipatedly, butterflies in his stomach over who might answer. It could be John, it could be Helen, or it could be Gwen herself. Whoever it was, he was ready.

The door opened revealing the Caucasian man with brownish graying hair he knew to be Mr. John Stacy. "Peter Parker," he acknowledged. "Boy, are you a sight to behold!"

"Wish I had a good comeback for that, but I'm glad to see you too," Peter replied, shaking his hand pleasantly, but firmly. "Plus, I just wanted to say congrats on retaining your commissioner position for, what has it been? _Five _years now?"

"And counting, Peter, old boy! My, do you have a pleasantly firm handshake as always!"

"Glad you noticed, sir! Aunt May always tells me I need to practice if I wanna have a job someday."

"Keep it up and you certainly will. Come on in!"

Peter shuffled around Mr. Stacy, walking around him to kick his shoes off at the doormat. _Manners first, Pete_, he thought. He turned about to witness Gwen's mother, Helen Stacy, at the kitchen sink scrubbing dishes with meticulous accuracy. For all Peter knew, she was definitely where Gwen attained the tendency to keep everything neat and tidy - unlike her older sister, Emma, she might add. "Pleased to see you, Mrs. Stacy!" Peter said, waving.

"Peter!" she acknowledged, setting her rag aside to face him. "Here to help our darling, Gwendy, with her homework?"

"We help each other, Mrs. S."

"Excellent! Let me get her out here," she said before turning to call out to her daughter. "Gwen, someone's here to see you!" Nothing. Not even a swinging open of her bedroom door to indicate Gwen heard her. Either she wasn't present, was taking a nap, or was drowning out all sound with her earbuds plugged into whatever device she had running. "She must not hear me. John, can you go knock on her door?"

"Will do, honey," he said, noticing Peter's nervous look. "At ease, Parker, she probably just fell asleep was all."

John walked down the hallway and knocked firmly on Gwen's bedroom door. Within five seconds, she stood at the door, attentive to see her dad who was roughly six inches taller than her. "Sorry, I was earbudding. What's up?" she asked.

"Your mom called ya out here. Says someone's here to see you!" John said, nodding to Peter.

Gwen turned to Peter down the way and her eyes lit up. "Peter!" she called, shoving herself passed her dad and running up to attack Peter with a hug. "So good to see you!"

"You too, Gwen!" he said before pulling them apart. "Ready to rock calculus, physics, and whatever else we need done?"

"All of the above!" she said, turning to ask her mom something. "Mom, is it okay if we sit out here to work on homework?"

"Sure, darling!" said Helen. "Feel free to use the island over here, but don't hog too much of the space as I still need to cook dinner here soon.

"We won't, mom! In fact, we'll only get out one subject at a time so it's less messy," Gwen promised.

"If you say so, Ms. Neat Freak!" Peter butted in, much to Gwen's amusement. It didn't take long for them to get set up around the kitchen island adjacent to the dining room table. Unlike most students who claimed to need help with homework, the two of them actively sought to aid each other in the process of figuring out various calc problems and physics scenarios without telling each other the answers. It was in their mutual brainiac natures for them to work through it themselves.

Their conversations ranged from topics pertaining to the homework to random funny videos they found on YouTube, the prospects of which Helen, who continued her work in the kitchen, found rather amusing.

"So then Jim Giffigan, I found, did this whole segment on hot pockets of all things," Peter began. "He said there's either two ways to eat them: cold or boiling lava hot. So then he says, 'It'll burn my mouth?' 'It'll _destroy _your mouth, and everything will taste like rubber for a month!' _Hot pockets_!"

Hearing this, Gwen and Helen giggled, their laughs so funny, Peter laughed with them. "My Uncle Arthur absolutely _adores_ hot pockets, he would, no doubt, get a kick out of that!" Gwen commented.

"Maybe you and I should look up the YouTube video and send it to him then!" suggested Peter.

"We for sure can later," Gwen agreed. "Meanwhile, we need to get back to this, we're losing focus."

"Right," Peter complied. However, he felt the urge to go to the bathroom for a little bit as he had been holding it for sometime. "Is it okay if I maybe use the bathroom though?"

"Please, do," said Helen. "It's just right down the hall!"

"No need for directions, ma'am, I've been here _many _times!" he joked.

With that, Peter sauntered his way down the hall, closing the bathroom door behind him and emptying his imaginary pee bar he had above his head. After washing his hands and drying, he exited and walked back for the main area only to be met with a peculiar sight out of the corner of his eye: Mr. Stacy had left the door open to his study, exposing himself sitting at his desk examining a newspaper. There was no picture, but with his enhanced vision, Peter caught the Daily Bugle logo alongside the headline that read "SPIDER-MAN AT LARGE: WANTED BY LAW". Not wanting to disturb the captain too suddenly, Peter politely knocked on the study's door frame, getting his attention.

"Whatcha looking at there, Mr. Stacy?" Peter asked curiously.

"Oh, this?" he said, holding up the newspaper. "This is a recently published article for the Daily Bugle of which I was interviewed for. We spoke to editor-in-chief, J. Jonah Jameson, regarding my views on the masked vigilante they call Spider-Man."

Peter's stomach lurched. Hardly before had he heard the name spoken by someone else besides himself and the criminals he fought so it was rather neat that he was getting recognition by law enforcement. Of course, he wouldn't just walk in and say it was him. "So you call him Spider-Man too, huh?" Peter inquired.

"Everyone does, my boy. Besides, whatever he's doing is, no doubt, an attempt to pull a series of publicity stunts for the sake of Press attention," he stated coldly. Peter could not believe it. Never before had he thought a man as bright and sophisticated as Captain Stacy who also admired him would trash on his alter-ego like that.

"Whoa! You mean you think _Spider-Man_ is doing all this just for fame?"

Mr. Stacy stood up, towering inches above Peter to display his dominance. "Boy, I happen to be in charge of the law around here and my men and I have run into several of his attempts to mop up a crime scene before my units even arrive. Whatever he's doing is taking the law out of our hands and putting every news station, newsprint, and social media focus onto him instead of our city's law enforcement. It's so obvious he's another one of those vigilantes who's looking for attention."

Peter thought deeply to choose his words carefully. He wanted more than anything to not blow his cover much less his chances with Gwen by insulting what her father stands for. "What makes you think he's looking for fame?" he asked civilly.

"Vigilantes often call a certain idea to attention and his actions reflect the idea that the law should be in the people's hands, not the other way around," John explained firmly.

"I hear what you're saying, but consider this: what if he's trying to do something the police can't? Like, say, the police aren't there to stop an armed robbery and someone like him, or even Daredevil, shows up to deal with the criminals themselves? I'd say that's more of a public service than anything."

The captain thought about those words silently as if settling on them. "I think I understand what you're trying to say, but even the Bugle thinks that what he does is rather menacing. Citizens may think otherwise, but it's still outside the law."

"I'm just saying what if we can somehow manipulate the laws to accommodate for vigilantes entering the picture? Surely, there must be a way to do that, right?"

"Peter, _I_ make the laws around here, not you. While I do appreciate the persuasion, I'm afraid I'm the wrong person _to _persuade. Now if you don't mind, even I believe it's better for both of us if we disengage this conversation right now."

"Sorry, sir," Peter said meekly. "I didn't mean to insult you or anything."

"It's alright, boy," John assured, laying a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Just remember, a cop's job is a cop's job."

Peter nodded shyly toward this. Thankfully, he had enough respect for Captain Stacy to know when to stand down. He couldn't remember any time before he had ever got into a dispute with him, though, based on the trajectory of this conversation, this might have been the first. Hopefully, it won't get this way again. Just then, Gwen poked her head into the room.

"Hey, dad! Hey, Peter!" she called out pleasantly. "Mom and I decided to make dinner for all of us. What do you guys say about her pot roast or something like that?"

It didn't take long for John to answer. "Muffin, you don't know how long I've _adored_ your mother's pot roast!"

"I don't think I've ever had it before, but that sounds like a delight!" Peter agreed, willing to be adventurous like he was as Spider-Man.

"Alright then, it's a deal!" Gwen affirmed.

The dad and her daughter's best guy friend eventually made their way out of the study, John helping Helen prepare the dish whilst Peter and Gwen continued to work on homework for as long as they possibly could. Soon enough, they started having dinner and, though it wasn't Aunt May's cooking, Helen Stacy made a mean pot roast according to Peter! If there was anything Peter could appreciate is that it had always been this way ever since Gwen started having Peter over for homework dates throughout high school. Occasionally, she would also have Harry and MJ over for the four of them to have a movie night or even a sleepover where the girls slept in Gwen's room and the guys slept in the living area. One thing was for sure, Gwen thought right in having Peter over by himself for she had sensed their friendship growing stronger and wanted, more than anything to prove it to her parents. Even after Peter left for the night, there remained an air of certainty that Peter and Gwen were getting closer than they thought they might. Hopefully, it would stay this way forever.

* * *

**My favorite chapter to write so far. Have a good rest of your day!**


	6. The Wings of the Vulture

The day ended and the employees at Oscorp took their leave, most of them not looking back since they barely wanted to stay there in the first place. Most people who worked there found it rather strenuous to stay an eight to ten hour day on a regular basis, though, without the more ambitious people, there would be a shortage of people who actually loved their job. Among those who enjoyed working, Otto Octavius had to be one of the most ambitious. As the stocky man wearing round spectacles, a lab coat he often took home with him, and sporting a balding head strolled his way out of the building, his mind was spinning with ideas and things he knew would, no doubt, propel the company from a state of what he felt to be "stagnancy" for the past few years. Sooner or later, though, he hoped to one day prove himself to be helpful in saving the company.

His thoughts were put on hold, however, the moment he strolled past an alleyway bordering the Oscorp Tower and what sounded like a muffled explosion resounded. Curious, he stopped in his place.

"What was that?" he exclaimed, somewhat concerned.

The good doctor had dealt with strange noises sounding from within and outside the tower before. Most of them had to do with security or elemental systems - such as water or gas - having a faulty connection to the building and him having to assist in maintenance fixing it. _This had better not be another mainframe gas leak I need to fix,_ he thought lividly. He didn't want to have to pause going home from work to deal with another situation.

And so he cautiously walked into the alleyway to check for the source of what had been the problem. As he stood at the base of the tower, he listened for another noise to confirm where the issue had been emanating from. When he heard nothing, he simply shrugged and attempted to walk out of the place. Before he could react, however, a cloud of tear gas consumed his surroundings seemingly out of nowhere. Just a whiff of that stuff caused him to slump to the floor, his vision blurring and fading the moment a shadowy winged figure seemingly fell from the sky and stood over him.

The figure waited a few moments to confirm whether Octavius was knocked out cold from the impact of the tear gas. A deafening silence followed as he checked to make sure the good man would not wake up until he brought him to his base. As if by magic, the winged figure hovered over Octavius's unconscious figure, dropping its feet to latch onto his lab coat's shoulders, and seamlessly lifting the man into the air. A high-pitched hum resounded as the figure took off, the unconscious Otto in tail, as civilians watched from below, wondering what, or who, on Earth was carrying off a "pharmacist".

* * *

Otto Octavius later woke up to a cold splash of water reaching his face like a wave in the ocean surging over him. Water dripped from his face as he viewed through slits in his vision the outline of a man with a lesser amount of hair than him standing firm in front of a bright light, the sun-like brightness nearly blinding him.

"Wake up, my friend," the elderly voice rang out. "Ah, yes. A rather unexpected welcome for you, our guest, though I'm only certain you'll adjust well to the light within moments."

Octavius blinked three times. His glasses soaking wet from the water, he regained full consciousness to find the man standing over him was no stranger, but rather a former colleague that he only heard rumors of his absence circulating throughout Oscorp: Adrian Toomes. The man stared him down, his beak-like nose protruding into his personal space.

"Adrian… T-Toomes?" Otto questioned. "Was it-was it _you _who knocked me unconscious?"

"And rightly so, for I have come to seek answers from you," Toomes explained as he strolled about.

"Well if you're looking to brutally beat them out of me, you'll get no such pleasure from me!" Octavius riled up defensively.

"Relax, Otto, for I have learned better in the CIA than to pummel the answers out of lesser beings than myself," Toomes stated proudly. "Rather, I am seeking answers on that lying thief, Osborn, as something rather subtle and non-threatening: a friend."

"A f-friend? B-but would you consider us friends after all you did to get ahead?"

"Not as we were, Otto, but as something more along the line of acquaintances."

Octavius felt reluctant to answer whatever the bird-like man had to say. If Toomes had more to say regarding the situation at Oscorp, which he no longer worked for, he would be more than happy to get out of there as soon as possible.

"Given your circumstances with how Osborn let you go, Adrian," Octavius started, "my intuition tells me you're only in it for personal gain to trump Oscorp with."

"I should mention, Otto, that the less you comply, the more I will be forced to take extreme measures to ensure you talk," Toomes threatened, jutting into his face. "And you wouldn't want _that_, now would you?"

Octavius pursed his lips rather tightly. Adrian Toomes getting up in his face all menacingly felt like enough to persuade him into complying, but only under one condition. "Fine, but only if you let me go after this!"

"Just promise you won't tell anyone we talked. Are we clear?"

Otto mulled over for a second before reaching his conclusion. "Clear."

"Alright," Adrian said, turning menacingly toward the light. "First off, when does Osborn's tech flight arrive in shipment to the tower?"

"...Osborn's announcements indicate that the arrival should take place tomorrow, Friday, late evening - roughly 7 p.m."

"Mmhmm… And _where_ might the shipment arrive?"

"The Port of Authority, straight from New Jersey."

"Excellent," Toomes affirmed, clenching his fist. "Now, Otto, I hope you keep your promise as your are free to go! I will not disclose what I will do with this information, though you might be pleased to know it may benefit you in the long run."

Otto gulped. He wasn't sure what to expect, though he was certain, within that time, Toomes would remain a friendly force. "Alright, Adrian," he said standing up, surprised he wasn't restrained to his chair. "Thank you for being an acquaintance; you have my word."

And with that, Octavius fled the dark room, not knowing what to expect beyond its boundaries. If anything, he would be glad to see natural light again should it come to him.

Meanwhile, Toomes just stood there, pondering his evil intentions as he silently gloated over what new information he had obtained. Never did he want to hurt Octavius, which made him rather glad he could pull the answers from him without much effort. Thoughtfully, he turned to his phone, ringing up Schultz as his contact whom he now trusted so much.

It didn't take long for Montana to answer the phone. "Vulture to Shocker, I've let the subject go as he's given me all the information we need to be successful. Osborn won't know what hit him once we steal what he needs most."

The two conversed about how well everything might go according to plan. Hopefully, no interference would stand in their way of vengeance against the likes of Osborn.

* * *

Friday came and the whole day Midtown High was stoked for the first home game of the season. Everyone wore spirit wear far and wide and the cheerleaders went around the school promoting the main player's football jerseys - especially Flash's - up and down the hallways in an effort to pump everyone up. Thankfully, Liz wasn't too full of herself to flaunt around stating that the star player was also her boyfriend - only vice versa with Flash telling his football cronies Liz was his girlfriend - and Peter could commend her for that. Even Gwen and MJ were amazed she didn't want to be "that girl". Aside from that, Harry had big plans to bring his posse to the game later that evening and, surprisingly, none of them backed down. This would mean more time for Harry to spend getting cozier with MJ.

Likewise for Peter, he would get more time with Gwen. For years, he had fantasized about being a big hunking jock on the football team to rival against the likes of Flash in an internal competition to see who was the best. Sadly, the opportunity for him to do so had passed for he acquired his secret "spider muscles" far too late after last year's tryouts had ended. Plus, soon after was when his grieving process for Uncle Ben started. He wouldn't have cared anyway.

Regardless, the idea of Harry going to the football games, despite failing last year's tryouts, was rather intriguing to Peter. While they drove to Midtown's football field in Harry's green convertible, two things lingered in Peter's mind; one was how he and Gwen were going to tell Harry and MJ the former two like each other; the other was what was the deal that Flash allowed him to come to his games.

The latter question came forth at exactly the right moment. "So, Harry, what's the deal between you and Flash that you can, you know, attend his games despite not making tryouts last year?" Peter inquired.

"Simple," Harry started. "Flash and I made a bet last year that, should I fail to make tryouts myself, I ought to be there and support him at all his games - even away games."

"That's cool and all," said Gwen. "But what about us? Wouldn't Flash be against us showing up at his games as much as he was when we showed up at his place?"

"He didn't say anything about not bringing you guys, so I figured I'd keep you all under his radar. That way he doesn't have to care, nor do _we _have to worry," Harry explained.

"Very smart of you, Harr-bear!" said MJ cutely followed by her leaning beyond her passenger seat to plant a wet peck on his cheek.

"Aw, schucks!" Harry responded, blushing.

At this, Peter shot Gwen a look that indicated, "You want to?", but she shied back, communicating it was too soon. Harry and MJ were already happy as it was so clearly Peter and Gwen knew they should avoid shoving their happiness down their throats. With that, he cupped her hand and patted it, sending the message that "Your secret's safe with me."

Once they arrived in the school parking lot, the place was packed, though they eventually snagged a spot the moment someone else pulled out of theirs. They walked in, showed their tickets they bought in school with their IDs, and made their way to the bleachers, Harry and MJ displaying a showoff amount of PDA whilst Peter and Gwen casually looked at each other mostly. The game kicked off with a bang, the Midtown Manhattan Tigers starting with the ball against the Central Park East Mustangs. Things were looking good in the play-by-play, the announcer calling out each play as they went along and the cheerleaders led by Liz encouraging everyone students, adults, and kids to cheer as loud as they could. While Gwen was open to cheering loudly, Peter seemed rather shy about projecting his voice so loud and far.

"Come on, Pete, just try it!" Gwen encouraged, nudging Peter on the shoulder.

"Not sure my voice really has the capacity to carry a cheer that far," said Peter shyly.

"You don't know if you don't try," Gwen replied, smiling.

The one thing he couldn't resist was her smiling face. Seeing it ultimately caused him to cave, take a huge breath, and forwarded all his diaphragm strength into one simple cheer. "T-I-G-E-R, we are fire, yes we are! GO TIGERS!" he shouted loudly with the crowd at the tail end of the cheer.

Hearing this, Gwen punched him playfully on the shoulder. "Not bad!" she complimented.

Peter smiled in return. Guess all he needed was a little encouragement from Gwen.

The game continued throughout the next two periods until the two teams were tied at seven. Things really started to heat up the more the night air cooled down, Midtown students tense about where the game would go after this. The more the cheerleaders cheered the players on, the more the student's section continued to shout with all their might to ensure victory.

As the announcer continued to call the plays, the players got into position to hike the ball, the hiker tossing it to Flash who seemed to hesitate searching for a player to throw it to. From Peter's point of view, he seemed to mouth the words, "Randy, you're up!" before tossing it to Rand who ran way out towards the end zone. However, a Mustang player stuck to him like glue, going as far as Flash threw the ball and catching it himself, swiftly running around the crowd of both teams and into the opposite end zone. Seeing this caused Peter and Harry to slump in unison, the two of them watching the scoreboard increase on the away team's side.

"Come on, Flash! Don't let a simple interference get you down!" Harry called out supportively.

The Mustangs unfortunately scored the after points kick immediately following, effectively landing the ball in between the goal posts and watching it tumble back to the ground. Peter could not believe what he was seeing and he didn't even have to look to understand that Gwen was feeling the same. He darted his eyes toward the cheerleaders down in front. From what he could decipher, Liz was suggesting they try something risky much to their dismay, but he couldn't hear a word of it. Next thing he knew, the cheerleaders were lined up to toss Liz and her small body up into the air, several cheerleaders standing in front of her to catch her. However, once the cheerleaders threw Liz forward and she struck a pose midair, the cheerleaders in front failed to catch her, her leg impacting the ground with a bone-cracking thud. The crowd gasped as Liz grabbed her ankle, writhing in pain over the accidental drop that just transpired.

Although Peter barely cared for Liz given the way she tended to treat him, she couldn't help, but stare in shock over what just happened to her. The female cheerleading coach crossed the track over to her, presumably asking what happened and how she feels. It didn't take long for her to call an ambulance, which showed up in the nick of time to carry her away on a stretcher. Peter looked over to Gwen to see how she was taking it and clearly she was just as much at a loss for words as he was. He almost wasn't sure words were even appropriate considering the current state of the game.

Suddenly, Peter's Spider Sense rang. _Really, right now? _He thought - but the danger seemed to be coming from above. He looked up to notice a winged figure flying high above the buildings, swooping low enough into view that anyone could have noticed. From what he had read in the papers, this could have been something - or someone - potentially dangerous as a rather similar - or possibly the same - winged figure was last seen carrying an unconscious "pharmacist" away from Oscorp. Whatever it was, this gave Peter a good excuse to leave the game early.

"You know what?" he said, turning to Gwen. "I'm not really feeling this game currently so I need some air. Uh, don't follow, okay?"

Without glancing or even second thoughts, Peter shoved his way out of the students section, Gwen calling for him to no avail before he rushed out of sight.

Peter rushed back to the convertible to grab his bag out of the back seat and ran straight for an alleyway nearest the school where he threw his bag toward a dumpster and webbed it. Continuing his run, he threw off his clothes, applied his mask and gloves, before he knew it, he was suited up as Spider-Man ready to catch some bad guys once more.

"Gotta blanket the area and track whatever birdie decided to nearly drop in on the football game," Peter quipped to himself as he soared over the building.

As if a psychic burst panned out in front of him, Peter's Spider Sense picked up on where the mysterious winged figure had gone, using also his enhanced hearing to sense the loud humming sound it emitted. His eyes panned across the buildings following the infrared path of bread crumbs laid before him when, thankfully, he spotted the winged figure diving down a ways across the island.

"Bingo!" he said, turning to web swing his direction.

Spidey flew over the oncoming buildings acrobatically before touching down and perching on a building overlooking the Port of Authority shipping docks. The sun was getting to be rather low to a point where most of what he could see throughout the docks were a bunch of shadows masking everything from the searchlights that swept the area. From the outside, the shipyard appeared rather calm and undeterred, but the flying bird-like man or whatever it was was nowhere to be found. Without much to go off of besides sheer wit and spider-like instincts, Spidey propelled himself forward onto the fence protecting the shipyard perimeters and silently leapt off to attach himself to a nearby crane. From his new vantage point, he oversaw an Oscorp truck drive its way onto the dock nearest to a freighter ship that carried what looked to be an important shipping crate.

"So Oscorp must be shipping something very important, but what would a flying bird-like dude want with Harry's dad's work?" Spidey stopped to ask himself.

Spidey caught wind of yet another high-pitched hum that died the instant a shadowy figure perched itself on a watchtower nearest to the shipping area. He didn't even have to look twice to determine that this was the bird man he saw just moments ago.

"Whatever this is, I don't think you should get your hands on it!" Spidey commented, spinning a web to take him to the other side. Time seemed to slow down the moment the vulture-like being rose from his perch and attempted to swoop down toward its intended target. In a moment's notice, Spidey impeded the bird man's progress, kicking it directly in the face and throwing it off balance.

"What?!" the bird exclaimed, befuddled as to what just hit him.

The bird-like figure turned around to notice the silhouette of the hero turning around to reposition itself toward him. Spidey then sent himself tumbling through the air, raising a fist that ultimately connected with the bird man's metallic wings. The clang that resulted from Spidey connecting his fist to such a hard alloy rang far throughout the shipyard that someone could have easily heard it or mistook it for one of the crates banging together. Spidey, however, was thrown off balance to where the bird man grabbed him by the shoulders, tackling him to the side of the watchtower they were adjacent to and possibly getting the attention of the guard inside.

"Wow, and I thought armored birds were an extinct species," Spidey quipped. "What sort of fossil did we uncover today?"

"You dare call Adrian Toomes a _fossil_?!" the bird man exclaimed, his old face showing through the light given off by the ship's light sources nearby. From what Spidey could see, the man was also wearing a green, electromagnetically-powered flight suit that allowed him to gain ground and fly through the air.

"And I thought baby birds were snotty, but the old guys too?" Spidey joked. "What are you, some kind of pissed off old man who doesn't like his corned beef at a certain temperature?"

"The name is Vulture!" Toomes shouted angrily, squeezing Spidey by the shoulders. "And who is this I have: _Spider-Man_? I thought you were a myth!"

"Myths are just tall tales, old timer! _I'm_ the real deal your dealing with here!" Spidey quipped back. He then turned his web shooter downward to fire a web at an empty wooden crate, pulling it up and slamming it right into the Vulture's exposed side as it shattered, the contents falling to the concrete below and Vulture getting thrown off so bad he accidentally let Spider-Man go. Thankfully, though, Spidey was able to perch on a nearby crate close to the ground.

From all the ruckus occurring nearby, the Oscorp guards caught wind of what was happening and turned to affirm what the other was thinking. "Our position is compromised! Quickly, get the package out of here!" called one to the other.

"Right away, sir!" affirmed the other.

Quickly, but securely, the crate was loaded into the large Oscorp truck, the doors slammed behind it and the engine ignited for the vehicle to kick into gear almost immediately. Hearing this, the nearly dazed Vulture turned to Spider-Man, livid with enough energy to knock him dead.

"You idiot! Giving away our position are you?" said Toomes, his blood boiling. "Well, that package is mine whether you like it or not!"

"I wouldn't go stealing Oscorp's stuff if I were you," Spidey affirmed. "They're pretty valuable and they're just trying to advance the future and stu-" Before he could finish, the Vulture dove away from Spidey's lecture, leaving him with no solid conclusion. "And that's why I'm not sure I could be a great teacher. Not enough people listen to me."

Spidey swung off in pursuit of the Vulture, the Oscorp truck aiming for the shipyard perimeters and rolling onto the main roads. Determined to impede the vehicle's progress, the Vulture landed on the truck's hood, startling the vehicle's occupants, and raised his razor sharp wings as they gleamed in the city's night lights. Using the edges of his wings, Toomes then punched a hole in the glass, breaking the windshield and causing the driver to steer the vehicle out of control in an attempt to throw him off. Before the Vulture could do anything to the drivers, Spidey swung around to the front of the vehicle and kicked the Vulture off of his perched position, sending him tumbling back into the sky. Ever so bent on stopping the vehicle, the Vulture ignored the fact that Spidey was now on his tail and continued to fly his way over the streets in pursuit of the vehicle.

_That Vulture guy sure is persistent, but still, whatever his beef with Oscorp, they can't afford to lose a valuable asset of any type_, Peter thought to himself, swinging higher in an effort to catch Vulture by surprise. Arching off of his previous web swing, he landed his feet firmly on top of the Vulture's back, causing Vulture to lose altitude ever so slightly, but without falling.

"Surf's up!" Spidey exclaimed, mimicking the nature of a surfer dude out on a sunny day.

Keeping a close eye out on the Oscorp truck turning the corners below, Vulture did a three sixty roll over in an attempt to throw Spider-Man off, but found that the Web-head persisted in sticking his feet to his back much like a spider would. Without much resources to throw Spidey off, Vulture opted to lean in close to the buildings in an effort to scare him off. Seeing this as an easy kill tactic, Spidey disconnected his spider hairs from the Vulture's back and shot a web up to him as he fell through the air. The web connected to Vulture just enough to bring him down a few feet as he struggled to break free of the wall crawler's webs.

"Unhand me you… you… bug-eyed freak!" Toomes spouted, unable to come up with a good insult.

"Look who's insulting who for their appearance!" Spidey stated somewhat hypocritically.

The Vulture flew upward in an effort to lose Spider-Man, but was unable to shake him due to the Web-head's persistence. He then flew low over a building, Spidey's web clinging to his foot as he trotted along the roof determined not to let go. Coincidentally for Vulture, the truck happened to be turning down the road directly below; with a bird-like dive, Vulture incidentally twisted Spidey's hand up in his web, causing him to let go as he dove for the truck. With a thud, Vulture landed on the roof of the truck, ejecting out his razor-blade-like wings and sinking them into the roof of the vehicle. The metal tore open with an excruciating metallic screech for a few seconds before Spidey came yet again to kick the bird man off the truck. The two wrestled in the air as the truck then took a detour for a nearby parking garage, much to the dismay of the Vulture who managed to catch it out of the corner of his eye.

"NO!" Toomes exclaimed, himself slashing at Spidey in an effort to claw at him like the bird of prey he was. The two rose up to new heights toward a building until Vulture managed to kick Spidey off of him, the wall crawler skidding to a halt atop the concrete roof.

"You think you're some kind of hero, don't you?" the Vulture asked Spider-Man. "To let them get away and forward Osborn's plans? Well, if only you knew the harsh realities of this world, my boy!"

"Harsh realities? Osborn? What's your beef with Oscorp anyway?" Spidey demanded.

"That matters not what I'll do, but what you'll find out soon enough!" the Vulture spouted, throwing down a smoke bomb directly in Spider-Man's direction. Next thing he knew, Spidey's surroundings were clouded in smoke, the Web-head coughing and swatting the cloud away to ensure he didn't lose sight of Vulture. Unfortunately, soon as the smoke cleared, the bird man was gone, having flown away in a flash of light that he could no longer pick up his trail.

"Damn it, he's gone!" Spidey exclaimed, bummed out he let one criminal - his first supercriminal he ever fought for that matter - slip through his fingers so easily. "One thing's for sure, though, that vulture sure had a lot of persistence to try and ruin the advancement of Harry's dad's company. I wonder what his next big project is right now? Maybe I should ask Harry about that when I return to the game. Speaking of…"

Spidey checked the time on his phone he had strapped to his web shooter utility belt and noted that it was now close to the end of the game time for Midtown.

"Oh no, the game might end soon! Oh, well, not sure if it was worth it to stay or anything - especially given the state of the game when I left. I just hope Liz is okay. Just hope Gwen won't be the one to fry my ass when I get back. She's the last person I'd want to be mad at me."

And hopefully that would not be the case. Although he clearly abandoned her yet again, the last thing Peter wanted was for his friends to give him grief for abandoning him. The idea of doing so was such a foreign concept to him that to now have to do it on a semi-regular basis was almost killing him in a sense. If this ended up being the reason he lost friends, though, he would have to do whatever he could to get them back no matter if it wound up hurting him.


	7. Committee Business

Back at the football field, the game started to wind down, the Central Park Mustangs maintaining a huge lead while the Tigers continued to play, clearly weighed down by their one ineffective play. The cheerleaders continued to cheer rather wholly in spite of the loss of their cheer captain since, regardless of the outcome, the student's section _had _to remain pumped for the game.

With things being the way they were, however, Gwen couldn't hardly take the current circumstances. For one, her high school football team was losing their first home game of the season - a rather heartbreaking way to start the year. Moreover, Peter just up and abandoned her halfway through the game, not caring about staying for even the downer outcome, which was now imminently inevitable. As the clock ticked down, she took a Snapchat of herself with a downcast expression, captioning it, "We are losing. Where are you?" and sending it to Peter. She wondered if he'd even return for the last few seconds of which seemed like an eternity at the rate things were going. The look of concern spread across her face couldn't have been more obvious to MJ who sat one spot down from her besides Harry.

"Still hung up about our favorite Tiger leaving?" MJ asked, kneeling beside her, Gwen so focused on the game that she barely noticed she got up to tend to her.

"Yeah…" Gwen admitted shyly. "Look, he's done this to me twice now that I'm really not sure I should tolerate it. I mean… What if he doesn't wanna… You know, be friends? Should I consider letting him go then?"

"I wouldn't go so far, sister," MJ reassured. "He might be a little confused is all. Just cut him some slack and maybe he'll come around soon enough."

"Right… Cut him some slack," Gwen affirmed, nodding. "Very well. In the meantime, what will you be up to after this?"

"Harry and I were gonna catch a movie and head to the Silver Spoon afterward. First we'll wait and see if Peter gets back so then we'll take you guys home."

Gwen forced a smile at her proposition. If her inner voice told her anything it was that she ought to maybe heed MJ's advice while also taking her own; part of her simply didn't wanna let Peter off the hook so easily if he was going to abandon her twice now in a few weeks. As much as she liked him, she had to let him know how she felt in order to enforce some rules if need be.

Once the game finally ended several minutes later, the Midtown Manhattan side of the field walked away glumly, disappointed that their star team would be so easily defeated in the opening game of the season. If this were how it was to be throughout the whole year, hopefully someone would encourage others to look on the bright side no matter the circumstance. As Gwen followed everyone out of the bleachers, she watched rather jealously as Harry and MJ held each other's hands beside her, flaunting their love to one another and giggling the way Gwen wished her and Peter would. She felt like the third wheel to their love, having nobody to enjoy the night with. If this was how it was to be, she wasn't sure a future with Peter could work.

She decided to hang back by the gate, waiting for something, anything, to indicate that Peter was going to show up. As the crowd of students vacated, she stood there alone, the dark surroundings of the school parking lot representing her literal and figurative loneliness she felt. There was a moment she was almost ready to give up waiting when, from the darkness, a familiar voice called out.

"Gwen!" shouted Peter, emerging from the darkness to appear under the light of the street lamp. "Gwen! I'm so sorry I didn't stay. See, Aunt May wanted me to go get groceries so I went-"

"Dude, you said you needed air," Gwen interrupted. "What sort of game are you playing with me?"

"What? No, I haven't been playing any games! See, I've just been trying to, you know, get some exercise and help my aunt. It's been really rough for us since my uncle's passing so I'm really trying to take my mind off it."

"Well then why haven't you been honest with me about it?" snapped Gwen. "I feel like you're keeping me in the dark about things. Twice now you've given me vague excuses only to come back later and say you were doing something besides be with me. What sort of good friend does that?"

"Oh no… Gwen, look, I've just… I've been a little unfocused and I'm just… Just trying to… Get my life back on track."

"But you won't include me in it, is that it? Look, Pete, I really like you, but your level of trust is concerning me. If you wanna get closer, then prove it to me. Otherwise, I'm not sure I'll want us to stay friends."

Peter's eyes widened at this statement, a pit expanding in his stomach. Of all the people he would ever hear say this, Gwen was the last one he wanted to hear it from. He slumped. "Gwen… I'm sorry. I know it might not seem like I care; I really do. If you give me another chance, I'll stick by you in the weeks building up to homecoming. Would you consider that?"

Gwen contemplated his words and realized what he said had potential to blossom into something else just like MJ and her father were recommending her before. If nothing else, she wanted to ask him to homecoming at some point so maybe she ought not to let him go quite yet. "I'm sure if you give me time and show improvement by then, I'll consider us two going to homecoming together… Just don't make it a race to see who asks first."

"You have my word," Peter said, nodding. These words from her were rather reassuring at the very least. Despite the uneasiness of the situation, he certainly had a reason to be stoked in the next couple weeks. "Are Harry and MJ waiting on us?"

"They said they'd wait in the car for us so I reckon we should get going if we're to get home at a decent time," Gwen explained to which Peter agreed. Together they strolled across the parking lot, searching for Harry's eye-catching green convertible that would no doubt stand out in the dead of night. Speaking of, Peter checked the time on his phone, noting the time nearing ten pm. This would be the opportune time for him to inform Aunt May that he'll be home within the next hour or so, putting her at ease for the time being.

"I gotta call Aunt May and let her know I'll be home within the hour," he said to which Gwen gave the "okay" signal. Once he dialed his aunt's number, he waited for the ringtone to pass and for her to answer. "Hey, Aunt May. Just calling to let you know I'm on my way home."

"Oh, wonderful!" May exclaimed over the phone speakers. "I was almost starting to think you'd never show. Thanks for letting me know!"

"Will do, Aunt May!" Peter answered. "Harry's gonna take Gwen home first since she's closest, but I promise he'll deliver me home within the hour."

"Sounds good," she replied. "Love you, Peter. Stay safe and see you soon!"

"Love you too, Aunt May! See you soon!"

He hung up. Hearing this was rather wholesome for Gwen and the others to hear as they drove away past the cars on the street on their way to Gwen's apartment. Harry had already proved himself to be an excellent driver so he would no doubt deliver John Stacy's and May Parker's most prized packages home in one piece. Given the time and how Peter had been home before curfew rather consistently, he looked forward to when Aunt May promised he would be rewarded soon.

* * *

Later that night, Adrian Toomes strolled into the below ground entrance of Big Sky Billiards, the neon sign lighting up his slender, shadowy appearance as he disappeared down the stairs. After the recent defeat he just suffered the last thing he wanted was for anyone to mock him for his incompetence; and so, he sneakily slipped into the bar and searched under his hat for the firm face of Montana seated in the low light. The bar noise made it hard for him to concentrate hard on where he was looking, but, eventually, his eyes locked straight onto Montana's iconic cowboy hat, the man himself seated at a high table alone waiting for Adrian. There remained a whiff of uncertainty regarding Toomes's mission results though, hopefully, he wouldn't take it too hard.

He sauntered over to the elevated table and took a seat on the elevated chair, meeting eye to eye with Montana as he sipped his American lager like he always did.

"Mission report, Toomes," Montana inquired.

"My attempt to obstruct the delivery of Osborn's tech flight was… An unfortunate failure to say the least," Toomes stated rather solemnly.

"What in tarnation?" Montana questioned. "Did y'all get distracted or something?"

"Not in the sense that I'm an old man who can barely remember my childhood, rather someone intervened in my attempt. That lousy do-gooder, Spider-Man, had my tailfeathers in a bunch while the Oscorp truck carrying the delivery ever so cleverly made its way into a parking garage, preventing me from ever catching it!" Toomes announced, balling his hands into fists. "If I had known that wall-crawler was real in the first place…"

"I tried to tell y'all about him, but you didn't seem to believe me. Do you believe me now?"

"Certainly so, Montana. Thankfully, I managed to escape, my suit and person largely unscathed. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that thanks to this Web-head's interference, Osborn has surely gained the upper hand in our plot against him. Not only will he get to display the tech flight himself at the showcasing, but now he'll be taking credit for _my _life's work! If there's anything we can do to prevent that we must refocus our efforts."

"A nice proposition. What'll it be? I break out _my _suit and we _both _squash the bug together?"

"Not so, but rather we distract Osborn from his work. You and I both ought to use _your _men to cause a disturbance at one of Oscorp's facilities, allowing us to steal more of the weapons you so desire and thus stirring Osborn to refocus his efforts on repairs and replacing stolen goods. It's a win-win scenario."

"I gather y'all are focused on ruining Mr. Osborn's company more than ya are eliminating the more apparent threat that's at stake. Shouldn't we be taking out the bug to ensure he don't ruin anymore of our missions?"

Toomes stood up, ramping up his blood pressure. "Simply too much is at stake for us to focus on something as petty as Spider-Man. If he just so happens to interfere with our next heist _then_ we can seek to destroy him together. Otherwise, I believe we ought not to waste time and resources hunting him down exclusively."

From where Toomes stood, Montana ducked under his cowboy hat, seemingly thinking to himself about the logistics of the situation. Hopefully, he wouldn't argue farther to the point of causing a rift between them. They were former colleagues after all so why would he waste energy trying to turn them into bitter enemies?

"Fine, but just remember, it's _our _operation and whatever complications rise up we'll deal with together," Montana said, extending a hand.

Toomes watched the hand, taking it firmly to affirm his partnership. "Very well. In that case, I suggest we ought to lay low for a while. We don't want to draw the city's attention to our presence quite yet."

Montana nodded. Either this would be a worthwhile partnership or the beginning of the end for Spider-Man.

* * *

Midtown Manhattan High couldn't have been full of mixed emotions the following Monday. Already they had lost the first game of the season and some people wondered if it would be worth it to continue; for most others, life went on and especially the jocks on the football team were optimistic that the season could get better. If there was anything that could make it better, it would be for them to win the homecoming game set to occur in the next month.

While homecoming was on the minds of many, Peter, Gwen, Harry, and MJ were just living in the moment. Once the bell rang to dismiss them from calculus class, Peter and Harry exited their classroom, books and bags in hand, the two of them excited to meet the girls for open lunch in the next few minutes. While Harry's excitement to see MJ was rather apparent to Peter, he still resolved to keep everything between him and Gwen to himself.

"Thanks for the help on that last problem, Pete!" Harry said, nudging his best friend on the shoulder. "Until you stepped in, my brain was totally like, 'I know what to do just not how to do it.'"

"Don't mention it, Harr," affirmed Peter. "As long as Gwen and I have got big brains, surely we'll continue to help you with homework well into college!"

"That'll be the day," said Harry, spacing off before snapping back to ask Peter something. "Anyways, so I couldn't help, but overhear MJ talking with Gwen about you and everything. Is there something you're not telling me?"

Peter's eyes bulged. He felt put on the spot as if he had wound up humiliatingly put on stage in the high school auditorium, naked, and everyone pointing and laughing at him. "What?! N-nothing, it's just… I don't…" Peter said, searching for the words when, all of the sudden, Gwen and MJ appeared in the midst of the crowd of students, striding confidently to meet their men. "Oh, hey, Gwen! Hey, MJ!"

"S'up, Pete?" Gwen said, bursting with energy.

"Hey, Tiger," MJ said smoothly before turning her attention to Harry. "How's my big hunking man doing in calculus today?"

She grabbed Harry's strong arm and kissed him on the cheek, Harry blushing his cheeks a rosy red. "Oh, just solving problems, asking for Pete's help; you know, the youzhe," he commented. "Are you both ready to go to open lunch with us?"

"Ready as we'll ever be, Harry!" Gwen responded enthusiastically.

Peter on the other hand, shot her a look of urgency. "Uh, actually, Gwen and I have some business to discuss, you know, with calculus and everything… So, you guys go ahead and we'll catch up!"

"No prob, Pete!" Harry confirmed. "We'll see you at my convertible!"

"Meet us at the Silver Spoon if you fail to catch us," MJ said teasingly, throwing them a sexy wave that made Peter question his attraction to Gwen.

Once they left, Peter turned his attention to the girl who mattered most.

"Need help with your calculus homework again, bright guy?" Gwen asked him rather presumptuously.

"Not actually. See, it's about Harry," he informed her under his breath.

"Oh? What about him?"

"Nothing too serious, it's just… I think he's onto us."

"How?"

"You know, between me and you, I mean we both talk to MJ about each other, but he's already picking it up before we're laying it down. Should we tell him?"

Gwen pondered his words for a moment. Even he wasn't sure he should've said anything. "Maybe give it a few weeks and we'll tell him together. Got that?"

Peter nodded. "Sure," he said with certainty. If there was anyone who would determine when to tell his best friend, it was the girl herself.

"Great, then let's go," Gwen affirmed, yanking Peter's arm forward to get him to walk with her.

The two of them strolled down the rows of lockers into the midst of crowded corridors to catch up with Harry and MJ when, suddenly, a rhythmic thumping neared their position. They turned to notice the cause of the thumps to be Liz Allan, all gimped up and recovered enough to where she could at least attend school in crutches, her leg in a cast. For a change, she seemed to be smiling at the two of them.

"Hey, Petey," she said happily before turning to Gwen. "Gwen. How's it going?"

"Liz!" Peter exclaimed, startled that she would ever willingly say something to him. "Hey… Uh, great to see you back here so soon. Are you feeling any better?"

"I'm better, but not completely one hundred percent. Anyways, I'm here to ask you both for help."

"Help?" Gwen asked. "What sort of help?"

"See, I never told you before, but I'm actually the homecoming committee leader," Liz informed them.

"Oh, really?" said Peter, slyly.

"Yeah, it's true. I just got promoted this year, it being my last year and all, and the fact that our previous leader stepped down at the end of last year. Anyhow, as you can see I'm all gimped up and can barely do anything to help the committee as of the next few weeks. So I was wondering if maybe you two could be my few extra hands until homecoming?"

Peter thought for a moment about her proposition. It sounded like a neat offer and, for the time being, he didn't really have anything else to balance with outside of his Spider-Man life. On the other hand, this could also be a chance for him to spend more time with Gwen outside of school and extracurriculars. In his mind, it sounded like the ride of a lifetime. "Well, I don't have much to do outside of school this year, so… Yeah! I can definitely help!"

"But Peter…" Gwen said concerningly. "What about the valuable time me and you could spend, you know, applying for colleges and earning scholarship money?"

"Gwen, that's important too, but it's only a few weeks and, plus, it's our senior year. Why not use this time we got to have some fun with each other?"

Gwen looked down shyly, apparently reconsidering the offer. "I guess we could have some fun doing that. Promise me you'll still look into important things by the end of this year," she said, holding out a pinky.

"The deal is sealed then!" he said, wrapping his pinky around her's and shaking it. They both turned to Liz. "We'll be glad to accept that offer together! W-when do we start?"

"Our first meeting of the year is Wednesday after school at 4:00. Gymnasium," said Liz. "Be sure to be there since I'm counting on you and all!"

"Don't mention it, Liz!" shouted Peter waving as she hopped away on her crutches.

Peter and Gwen strolled away, resuming their route to their best friend's car. If there was one thing besides open lunch Peter was excited for it was helping out on the homecoming committee with his favorite girl.

* * *

Wednesday evening arrived and Peter's excitement to contribute something to his school before he left was through the roof. Before now, he had never been picked to help make a difference at his school. He, Gwen, and the others were often considered social outcasts that nobody wanted to choose first for anything - including dodgeball. Today, however, would be a rare exception. With Liz being the one to ask them in the first place, things were shaping up to be better for Peter's remaining time at Midtown Manhattan High.

Students were gathered on the bleachers, their inaudible conversations echoing off the gymnasium walls as Peter and Gwen took their seat right next to one another like usual. It didn't take long for Liz to arrive hobbling in on her crutches while attempting to carry several huge papers and coloring supplies that looked rather important. She sat them down at a table and chair that had been set up personally for her to take a rest on and turned her attention to the chattering students.

"May I have everyone's attention, please?" she asked, projecting her voice just barely above the loud conversations. No one shut up to listen to her. "Hello?!"

Once more, the students continued to ramble creating an annoyed look in Liz's eyes that Peter couldn't help, but worry for. He turned back to face everyone. "Hey, guys! Yo, everyone!" he shouted, causing the students to immediately stop talking. "Liz is here and has something to say."

"Thanks, Petey," she said to Peter before turning to face the students. "As you know, today's our first day of the homecoming committee business and I am excited to announce that this year will be different with me at the helm of head organizer."

Hearing this, everyone applauded, many commenting on Liz's advancement through the ranks.

"Nice going, Liz!" an intellectual girl in glasses complimented.

"Way to step up!" shouted a nerdy guy, clapping.

"Thanks, guys," said Liz, casually bowing her head. She then proceeded to sit down on the chair seated in front of her, keeping her broken leg elevated on the adjacent chair. "Anyways, so for starters, I should let you know that while I'm recovering from my injuries last Friday, I'll be relying on you all to do most of the work for now. Before we can do that though, we ought to go over the usual business of choosing our theme for the dance this year. I have many ideas for the game and pep rally, but this year I want to make the dance top priority to ensure that we make it the best experience possible for the student body."

By this point, the students were nodding in agreement.

"So for this year," Liz continued, "I've selected three themes: Enchantment Under the Sea, Over the Rainbow, and 80s Retro Vibe. Anyone want a vote?"

All in an instant, everyone shouted out their pick simultaneously, muddling the responses in a myriad of inaudible responses. Meanwhile, Peter and Gwen just stood there, barely knowing what to pick themselves.

"Hold on, hold on!" Liz projected, raising her hands to calm them down. "Let's go around the room and vote. Lenny, you first."

"I vote Enchantment Under the Sea," said the nerdy Lenny confidently. "It's big, it's bold and it's straight from _Back to the Future_ \- one of my favorite movies, I might add."

From there, Liz continued to go around the room, calling out random student names to give their pick, some of them choosing the movie-focused themes while others chose to represent the eighties. The pressure was on as Peter fought to choose what suited him best. Scanning the room trying to imagine each theme, he could see what the theme decorations would look like for each - especially Enchantment Under the Sea. Thinking about it, though, he knew he loved classic movies like _Back to the Future_ and _The Wizard of Oz_ as much as the next guy, though something about the school representing an entire decade struck his fancy like nothing else did - except Gwen. Given that he was born the decade after the eighties ended - nineteen ninety-five to be exact - the prospect of the entire school being warped back to the eighties seemed appealing to him. When the time came for Liz to call on him, he had certainly made his decision.

"Alright then, Petey, what's your vote?" Liz asked anticipatedly.

"I vote for the 80s Retro Vibe if no one else will!" he shouted enthusiastically.

"We already have plenty of votes in your favor," Liz noted before turning to Gwen. "And you Gwen?"

Gwen looked down, appearing rather puzzled as if searching for the best answer on a test. Seeing this, Peter reached out and touched her hand, leaning in to her ear.

"Don't worry, you can copy my answer this time," Peter whispered.

Gwen turned to face Liz once more. "I guess I'll go ahead with 80s Retro Vibe," she ultimately chose.

Liz took note of this on her piece of notebook paper, tallying everyone's votes for a grand total that was obvious to everyone. "I guess it's set; we'll do 80s Retro Vibe!"

The majority of students that voted for the eighties applauded while others seemed to get discouraged that their vote didn't win.

"Now then, since we have our theme chosen, it's about time we put together the banners with appropriate designs on them. Here, divide yourselves into groups of your choice, take these huge poster papers, and spread them out all over the gym to color on," Liz announced. "I can't wait to see what you have in store for me!"

The students hopped up from their spots on the bleachers and walked down in groups toward Liz's table to grab a piece of poster board and their markers of choice. Aside from choosing the brighter colors for neon vibes, Peter and Gwen were each other's obvious picks for poster partners.

They set up shop in the corner of the gym nearest to the drinking fountain in case they, themselves, got thirsty while working.

"I don't know about you with neon colors and everything," Gwen commented. "You sure you won't go overboard like you did drawing me in art class?"

"That was just the background! I'm sure I can make this look reasonably flashy enough to get someone's attention," Peter promised. That was a moment Gwen never seemed to let him live down.

"Well, in that case, let's start with the essential words first."

The two spent their time spelling out the word "homecoming" in big, bold letters alternating between lime green, light pink, lemon yellow, and sky blue to give off a colorful eighties vibe. From then on they wrote the words "80s Retro Dance" in smaller, all pink words so that it wouldn't clash too much with the multi-colored headline. The poster was looking like a neon rainbow before they knew it.

"Perfect!" Gwen complimented. "Looks fun!"

"Thanks!" said Peter.

"We still have to add some pictures to make it stand out."

"How about a disco ball or something?"

"I like your style! Let's go with it!"

Honing in on his art skills he picked up from his required sophomore year art class, Peter drew his best sketch of a disco ball dangling from the top of the poster, the ball itself just hanging by a thread.

"Wow, that's really good," complimented Gwen once more.

"Thanks! One thing's for sure, my art skills do come in handy!" Peter boasted.

"Certainly," Gwen agreed, holding forth a neon orange marker. "What do you say we use neon orange to draw a tiger? You know, to represent the Midtown Tigers?"

"You know, I'm not exactly sure I do well drawing a tiger face without a reference," he declined. "What do you say we practice on each other's faces first?"

Gwen thought about such a proposition for the moment. "Perhaps… If it gives you good practice, then yes!"

Excited, Peter pulled up a picture of a tiger face on his phone and used it as a reference to draw a similar pattern on Gwen's face. She giggled as he drew on her, claiming the feeling of marker on her face to be rather ticklish and reminiscent of when she used to draw on herself as a kid. She couldn't stop laughing or smiling until he was ultimately finished coloring a tiger's facial structure on her pretty human face. Like an artist viewing his work, Peter morphed his fingers into a rectangle formation to view his priceless work on Gwen's face much to her amusement.

"I'd say that looks great!" Peter boasted once more. "Now do me!"

"Okay!" she said, grabbing the black marker. Unlike him, she just drew black stripes on his face.

"Really, that's it?" Peter asked, bemused.

"I'm no artist like you so I guess it'll have to do."

The two stared at each other, laughing moments later in enjoyment of each other's company. Before either of them could resume usual business, they heard the thudding of crutches nearby as Liz cleared her throat.

"What is _this_?" Liz demanded sternly.

"This?" Peter denied meekly. "Oh, we were just… Practicing, yes, practicing our tiger designs on the other's face… You know, for reference!"

Liz lowered her head in annoyance, unable to facepalm due to holding her crutches. "Look, I brought you both into this committee to be my extra hands, not goof off by drawing on each other," she stated, annoyed. "We need homecoming to be absolutely _perfect _this year! If you can't keep your hands to yourself, either ditch the markers or use them properly."

Peter and Gwen opened their mouths to speak in an effort to defend their actions, but neither allowed their words to pass for fear of upsetting Liz more. "Yes, Liz. Sorry, Liz," they both said simultaneously.

"Good because right now, I'm really in no condition to be an ass to someone. Better keep working if you don't wanna get on my bad side," she said, hopping away.

Peter and Gwen lowered their heads in shame. Both were a little ashamed at their wasting time, but at least Peter found an excuse to have fun with Gwen like he wanted. He turned to smile at her.

"Hey, at least, on the bright side, you look like a true Midtown Tiger!" Peter complimented.

"Thanks, Pete," she said, flattered. "You're right, this _is_ loads of fun! I might have to keep coming here with you!"

Peter smiled. This was all he needed to hear - reassurance that he and Gwen were okay. If he could stay on the nice side of both Gwen and Liz while spending time with the former and working hard for the latter, hopefully this would be the perfect homecoming for everyone.

* * *

**Not the sharpest cliffhanger, but still hopeful nonetheless. This has been my longest chapter yet actually! I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it!**


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